As Rivals Struggle, Sanders Raises $25M

Fundraising provides a clear victory as rivals cut spending
By Bob Cronin,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 6, 2020 4:15 PM CST
Sanders Collects $25M, Topping the Field
Sen. Bernie Sanders speaks during a news conference at his New Hampshire headquarters Thursday in Manchester.   (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

While Sen. Bernie Sanders remains tied, more or less, atop the Iowa caucus results, he finished January far ahead of the field in fundraising. The presidential candidate raised $25 million last month, his best so far. That's more than any of his rivals collected in a full quarter last year, the New York Times reports. The success of his small-donor fundraising contrasts with the financial situation for his Democratic opponents as they begin campaigning in New Hampshire: Joe Biden and Pete Buttigieg are both pausing to raise money in the next two weeks. Sanders' campaign said the January windfall came from 650,000 people, one-third of whom are new donors, another sign of growing strength, per Politico. "Working-class Americans giving $18 at a time are putting our campaign in a strong position to compete in states all over the map," said Sanders' campaign manager.

Sanders has plans for the new money. He's going to spend $5.5 million on TV and digital ads in 10 states, even as other candidates are canceling their buys. The former vice president especially is struggling financially, starting the year with less than $9 million in the bank. Andrew Yang has cut his expenses after finishing sixth in Iowa, per Politico. His campaign manager said shrinking the staff was the plan all along after Iowa, but among the dozens of employees let go are his national political director, policy director, and deputy national political director. His campaign had reported having 230 paid workers last week. Some of the dismissed employees, who received at least a month's pay as severance, were unhappy at the way they received the news—through back channels or when their email or Slack access was cut off. Yang won 1% of the Iowa delegates. (More Bernie Sanders 2020 stories.)

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