Hillary raises $26 million for '08

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Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's presidential campaign yesterday announced she raised $26 million since announcing her bid Jan. 20, a record-setting pace that nearly equals what the entire Democratic field raised in the same period from the last election.

Together with more than $10 million that Mrs. Clinton has transferred from her 2006 Senate campaign, the New York Democrat has set a staggering pace for both Republicans and Democrats for the first quarter of 2007, which ended Saturday.

"We are completely overwhelmed and gratified by the historic support we've gotten," said Patti Solis Doyle, Mrs. Clinton's campaign manager.

Meanwhile yesterday, the campaign of former Sen. John Edwards said he had raised more than $14 million in that period, including $3 million raised over the Internet. While the figure was only half what Mrs. Clinton raised, it exceeded the $10 million goal the North Carolina senator and 2004 Democratic vice-presidential nominee had set.

"We have raised what we need to be competitive," deputy campaign manager Jonathan Prince told reporters. "History has clearly indicated that the most money is not the key to the nomination."

Mrs. Clinton's fundraising dwarfs the $7.4 million that Mr. Edwards raised to lead the pack in 2003, and the $8.9 million then-Vice President Al Gore raised in the first quarter of 1999.

But a direct comparison is not possible because her fundraising includes money designated for both the primary and the general election, and Mrs. Clinton's campaign said it does not have a breakdown of how much it raised strictly for the primaries. The Edwards team said $13 million of their take was for the primaries.

Sen. Barack Obama, the Illinois Democrat who is considered Mrs. Clinton's closest competitor, has announced donations from more than 83,500 individuals, but has not released a dollar amount. According to the Clinton campaign, the former first lady had 50,000 donors.

"I think we'll do well," Mr. Obama told the Associated Press. "I think that we should meet people's expectations. More importantly, I think we will have raised enough money to make sure we can compete for the next quarter and beyond."

Campaign operatives and elections officials say they expect candidates will have to show $10 million raised during the past three months to demonstrate they can compete.