Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has raised $15 million from supporters since late April, CNN reported Thursday. The announcement came one day after Sanders held a rally in Madison, Wisconsin, for over 10,000 people, the biggest 2016 presidential rally so far.
Sanders, who is now firmly in second place in the Democratic race, took in 400,000 donations from 250,000 donors, making the average donation just $33.51, a marked distinction from other candidates who are attracting major donors with much bigger checks.
Sanders’ campaign hopes to raise another $25 to $35 million this year. They’re seeing most donations come in online, according to his campaign, where Sanders enjoys enthusiastic support.
While Sanders’ early success has surprised many, the spotlight remains on Clinton.
Hillary Clinton remains the strong frontrunner in the Democratic race, having raised $45 million in the first quarter of 2015. However, online prediction markets are betting that things will get more interesting before long.
On PredictIt, the largest legal prediction market in the U.S., Sanders is steadily ticking up but still trails Clinton considerably.
Meanwhile, rumors that Vice President Joe Biden will jump in the race have spiked prices on bets surrounding Biden’s candidacy, raising at least a few hopes and expectations that Clinton may not have the easy walk-away race that many previously predicted.
While Sanders’ early success has surprised many, the spotlight remains on Clinton.
Clinton holds a commanding lead in every single poll even though she has barely begun to campaign in earnest compared to Sanders, who is already touring the country in front of increasingly sold-out arenas.
Following Sanders’ success in Wisconsin, he’s headed to Portland, Maine, on July 6 to speak in front of an expected crowd of at least 4,000 supporters.
H/T CNN | Photo via DonkeyHotey / flickr (CC BY 2.0) | Remix by Max Fleishman
