Booker Sees Surge In Donations After Suggesting Campaign’s End Is Near
WASHINGTON – Sen. Cory Booker’s presidential campaign raised just over a half million dollars in two days after the candidate suggested his run for the White House could be over by the end of the month.
Campaigning in Iowa over the weekend, the New Jersey Democrat said the next 10 days could be “make or break” for his campaign.”
“I think every candidate should be having the same conversation. Do you have a pathway to win?” he said Saturday.
Earlier, Booker’s campaign manager, Addisu Demissie, admitted the answer to the question is far from certain.
Speaking with reporters on a Saturday morning conference call he said without raising at least $1.7 million by the end of September “we do not see a legitimate long-term path forward to ultimately winning the nomination.”
Booker has long been oddly positioned in the race to win Iowa’s first-in-the-nation caucus.
According to the latest Des Moines Register/CNN/Mediacom Iowa Poll released Saturday night, only 3% of respondents consider him as their first choice, but a solid majority, 60%, say they have a favorable view of him, and only 20% of likely voters said their minds are made up.
Sixty-three percent of poll respondents said they could be persuaded into supporting another candidate.
But after Booker and Demissie spoke on Saturday, donations surged.
As of Monday morning, the campaign said it brought in $508,629, its biggest weekend of fundraising since Booker entered the race on February 1.
“We’re lifted by the influx of support for Cory’s campaign for president — even from individuals who haven’t made up their minds on who to support in this race but who believe Cory’s voice is vital,” Demissie said in a written statement.
“We still have a long way to go over the next 8 days to reach our $1.7 million goal — but the past two days have shown the power of people rallying together to take on tough challenges. It’s the same spirit that will beat Donald Trump and change this country,” he said.