Bernie Sanders raised almost $6M within 24 hours of announcing 2020 bid
Within 24 hours of announcing his 2020 presidential campaign, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders raised closed to $6 million, according to his campaign.
More than 223,000 individuals donated $5,925,771 during that 24-hour period, his campaign said, with an average donation size of $27. Sanders said in a tweet on Tuesday that supporters from all 50 states have already donated.
After weeks of speculation, Sanders early Tuesday morning confirmed that he was launching a presidential bid during an interview with Vermont Public Radio (VPR).
"What I promise to do is, as I go around the country, is to take the values that all of us in Vermont are proud of — a belief in justice, in community, in grassroots politics, in town meetings — that's what I'm going to carry all over this country," Sanders told VPR.
During the 2016 presidential election, when Sanders was runner-up to then-Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, the Democratic socialist eschewed PAC donations. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, contributions under $200 accounted for about 58 percent, or about $134.6 million, of his total funds.
Comparatively, Sen. Kamala Harris, D-Calif., who announced her own presidential bid at the end of January, raised more than $1.5 million within 24 hours. The first 12 hours alone registered $1 million in funding, and the average donation was around $37, according to The Wall Street Journal. According to a campaign aide for Sanders, he notched up $1 million in donations within the first 3.5 hours of announcing his candidacy.
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According to Harris’ website, she will also not be accepting PAC donations.
Harris served as the attorney general in California until 2017 when she was elected to the Senate.