Sanders Campaign Says It Raised $46.5 Million in February

(Bloomberg) -- Bernie Sanders raked in $46.5 million in February, his campaign said, powered by his strong finishes in early nominating contests.

The monthly haul far exceeded the intake for January, when Sanders collected $25 million, the most of any Democratic candidate until then. The campaign, which asks donors for contributions of as little as $2.70 in email pitches, said it had more than 2.2 million donations in February.

Sanders won the popular vote in the Iowa caucuses, though he came in second to Pete Buttigieg in delegates awarded. He went on to win in New Hampshire and Nevada. Former Vice President Joe Biden's commanding victory in South Carolina on Saturday broke that winning streak, but the Vermont senator will likely retain his lead as the biggest fundraiser among candidates funding their campaigns with donations.

“We're especially proud that of the more than 2 million donations we received this month, over 1.4 million were from voters in states that vote on Super Tuesday,” Sanders' campaign manager Faiz Shakir said in a statement.

The small-dollar donor base Sanders built in his 2016 campaign has made him the top fundraiser among Democratic candidates in the 2020 nomination fight.

The financial advantage allowed him to look beyond the early nominating contests. He has spent $16.4 million on advertising in the 14 states that will vote on Super Tuesday, March 3, making him second to former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who has spent $218.7 million.

(Bloomberg is the founder and majority owner of Bloomberg LP, the parent company of Bloomberg News.)

Biden has spent just $1.7 million in those states. His win in South Carolina will give his campaign momentum, including favorable headlines and a fundraising burst.

Biden's South Carolina Firewall Holds But Sanders Still Strong

ActBlue, the online payment processing service for Democratic campaigns, reported that it processed a record 550,000 contributions on Saturday. It didn't provide a breakdown of the recipients, but candidates generally enjoy a fundraising burst after big wins in primary contests. Sanders brought in $6.5 million after winning New Hampshire in 2016.

Sanders has raised more than $167 million from over 8.7 million donations so far in the presidential race, the campaign said. More than 1.9 million people have donated to him. He raised $4.5 million on Saturday as voters went to the polls in South Carolina, the campaign said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Bill Allison in Washington DC at ballison14@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Wendy Benjaminson at wbenjaminson@bloomberg.net, Max Berley, Shamim Adam

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