Through the end of 2011, Catawba County residents donated more than $20,400 to the top presidential candidates, with Mitt Romney raising more than his GOP rivals and President Obama, according to campaign-contribution reports recently released by the Federal Election Commission.
Three GOP candidates – Romney, Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul – took in a combined 70 percent of the Catawba County donations. The totals: Romney: $6,575; Obama: $5,372; Paul: $4,924; Gingrich: $1,775; Herman Cain: $1,550; Michelle Bachmann: $250
The filing period was through Dec. 31, before the primary season began in 2012. Rick Santorum, who has won primaries or caucuses in four of the eight states that have held them thus far, did not raise any money in the county through the end of 2011
Hickory residents, in zip code 28601, donated the most combined totals, giving $8,437, followed by those living in zip code 28658, which included cities Newton and Startown. They gave $3,284.
The largest donations for Romney in Catawba County were one for $2,500, two for $1,250 and one for $1,000. He, however, had the fewest donors, with nine. Obama’s largest contribution was $2,000. He had the most individual contributions from one donor, 12. Gingrich had the next-highest total from an individual donor, with nine. Paul had three $1,000 contributions and five donors.
The latest campaign reports are significant because they cover a period that included several rounds of GOP debates, as well as the campaign immediately before the Iowa caucuses. In North Carolina, the campaign reports show several highlights in the money race:
- Gingrich, the former House speaker, had the largest percentage gain — 362 percent — since Sept. 30, from about $32,000 to nearly $149,000.
- Romney raised more money than Obama in Charlotte, where the Democratic National Convention will be held in September, and which is in one of the most voter-rich counties in the state.
- The entire GOP field, including candidates who have dropped out, raised a combined total that was larger than Obama's donations, but the president raised more money than the four remaining GOP contenders combined.
Statewide, the GOP holds a very slight edge over Obama in fundraising so far. The president has raised $1.143 million in North Carolina to date, while the 12 Republican candidates who were in the race at various times in the past 14 months have raised $1.156 million, according the Federal Election Commission’s website.
Nationally, Republicans hold a $30 million advantage: $155 million to Obama’s $125 million. Political experts say the donations will rise for a specific Republican candidate when it becomes clearer who the party’s nominee will be.
The Associated Press and Media General News Service contributed to this rep
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