Crusader Staff Report
Democratic presidential contenders Kamala Harris and Corey Booker are among the top fundraisers seeking to win the White House in 2020, according to the latest information from the Federal Election Commission.
Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders leads the pack with $18.2 million. Harris, a Senator from California and graduate of Howard University, is second with $12 million. Booker, a senator from New Jersey is sixth with $5 million.
In third place is former Congressman Beto O’Rourke ($9.4 million), followed by South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg ($7 million) and Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren ($6 million).
On the Republican side, President Donald Trump raised $30 million in the first three months of 2019, according to campaign reports filed Monday with the Federal Election Commission,
With nine months to go before the Iowa Caucus, candidates are busy trying to reel in donors for what is expected to be a crowded and intense presidential campaign season. At this point in the 2008 election season, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton raised $26 million each. With a larger field of Democrat candidates, many will rely on small donors for political support.
Harris is drawing many contributions from Hollywood. Comedian Wanda Sykes, Actors Ben Affleck, Elizabeth Banks, Eva Longoria Baston, Jon Hamm all gave to Harris. Emmy Award winner William H. Macy gave $1,000 to Harris. Actress and comedian Wanda Sykes gave $500.
Jane Lynch, best known for her role in the television show “Glee,” and Bradley Whitford, who played White House chief of staff in NBC’s long-running “West Wing,” both gave to South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg’s campaign.
There is concern that Harris may not get the full support of Black voters. Many remember her controversial record as a California Attorney General who prosecuted many Black males while truancy policies criminalized minority families. In several opinion polls, Harris remains fourth behind former Vice President Joe Biden, Sanders and O’Rourke. Booker is in seventh place out of 13 Democratic candidates.
Booker entered the presidential race in February this year. On April 6, Booker announced that his presidential campaign had raised more than $5 million in the first quarter of the year. Booker’s campaign said that 82 percent of his donors who gave since he entered the race in February were new contributors.
Earlier this month, Booker kicked off his “Justice for All” tour. The two-week national campaign aimed to shape policy positions and frame his campaign, focusing on economic, environmental justice and criminal justice.