Clinton raises record $45 million in first campaign quarter

In this June 26, 2015 file photo, Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton speaks in Fairfax, Va. Clinton’s presidential campaign says it is on track to report that it has raised more than $45 million since its launch in mid-April, with the vast majority of those donating giving less than $100. AP FILE PHOTO

WASHINGTON–Hillary Clinton announced Wednesday she raised a record $45 million in the first quarter of her US presidential bid, putting the Democratic frontrunner in prime financial position in the opening months of her 2016 campaign.

The haul leaves Clinton well ahead of her rivals for the Democratic nomination, including liberal Senator Bernie Sanders, former Maryland governor Martin O’Malley and Rhode Island ex-governor and senator Lincoln Chafee.

Clinton’s first-out-of-the-gate money announcement signals her team’s confidence in voter support as she gears up for a long-term campaign battle.

“Here’s what we know: In the first quarter of this campaign, supporters gave more than $45 million,” Clinton wrote in a tweet.

Final figures will be released once her campaign files its fundraising report in July.

Signaling successful grassroots efforts to raise modest amounts across a broad platform of supporters, her campaign said that 91 percent of the donations from April through June were $100 or less.

Clinton officially launched her White House run on April 12.

READ: Hillary Clinton says she’s running for president in 2016

In a Wednesday fundraising email, campaign manager Robby Mook described it as “a new record for this early in a campaign.”

It surpasses the $41.9 million raised by President Barack Obama in 2011 at the start of his re-election campaign, according to The Washington Post.

The donations, capped at $2,700 per individual, are to be used for Clinton’s primary race for her party’s nomination.

Team Clinton had reportedly set a goal of raising $100 million in 2015.

Candidates are expected to file their fundraising reports to the Federal Election Commission by July 15, and the first big campaign quarter is seen as a bellwether for a candidate’s viability down the stretch.

Ben Carson, a retired neurosurgeon, became the first of 14 major Republicans officially in the crowded field to release quarterly fundraising figures.

He raised $8.4 million in the April-to-June period, and $10.5 million since March 3, when he began an exploratory committee for the presidency, according to his campaign.

More than 151,000 unique individual donors have contributed to Carson, press secretary Deana Bass said.