Clinton, Christie - and Rubio - lead area fund-raising

Marco Rubio has been playing in Gov. Christie's neighborhood.

While Christie has raised more money in New Jersey than any other presidential candidate, his supremacy hasn't extended far. When it comes to collecting cash from the region that includes Philadephia and its suburbs in Pennsylvania and South Jersey - a short drive from Christie's office - Rubio has topped all Republican contenders.

Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton, though, is lapping everyone.

Capitalizing on deep Pennsylvania ties and New Jersey's dark-blue politics, she has raised nearly $1 million in the Philadelphia area. Her husband, former President Bill Clinton, was back for more on Thursday with a Center City fund-raiser.

Her Philadelphia support also adds a new twist on an old NFL rivalry: Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie gave her $2,700, while Dallas owner Jerry Jones gave the same amount to Cowboys fan Christie - as did six other Texas donors who listed the same business address as Jones: 1 Cowboys Parkway.

The local picture, of course, is just one piece of a national puzzle. But the filings show how the liberal bastion of Philadelphia and its moderate suburbs are breaking in the early race for elite support and the money that will pay for staff, travel, and the coming deluge of ads.

Though a familiar face in the region, Christie has raised $140,150 in Philadelphia and its seven suburban counties - second best among the Republicans, according to an Inquirer analysis of federal election data.

Rubio took in $148,482 in the region, thanks to a strong showing in the Pennsylvania suburbs - and that was before the Florida senator's Thursday swing through Philadelphia, King of Prussia, and Pittsburgh, expected to net around $550,000.

(It helped that Rubio entered the race first; since Christie officially declared June 30, he has outpaced every Republican in the region.)

Nationally - as locally - Clinton leads the way, with $33 million on hand as of Sept. 30, followed by her leading Democratic rival, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders ($27 million). Texas Sen. Ted Cruz and neurosurgeon Ben Carson rate in the middle of the pack locally, but surged nationally, reporting $14 million and $11 million on hand, respectively, tops among Republican candidates.

The GOP front-runner, businessman and reality TV star Donald Trump, has hardly raised any cash here. He's vowed to pay for most of his campaign himself.

A review of Philadelphia-area contributions through the first nine months of 2015 shows:

While other parts of the nation turn to upstarts such as Sanders, Carson, Cruz, and Republican businesswoman Carly Fiorina, this region is standing with the establishment. Clinton, Rubio, Christie, and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush did best here.

Carson, Cruz, and Sanders capitalized on small donors, as they have nationally. Each raised 80 percent of their money from the region in amounts of $200 or less.

Christie raised $2.2 million in his home state, where Clinton rated second with $1.5 million. But the governor hasn't gained broader traction, raising just $2 million outside New Jersey.

Only $56,400 of Christie's total came from South Jersey, where Clinton led with $71,422.

The grand total of about $2 million from local donors in the year's first nine months was a dramatic drop from the $5.5 million given by this point in 2007, before the last presidential race without an incumbent.

Clinton's dominance in the local money game is no surprise, given the region's Democratic tilt.

She "has an insurmountable advantage over anybody in the Democratic primary," said David Landau, Delaware County's Democratic chairman. "The state is very well-organized for her, both financially and at the grass-roots level."

Top Democrats, including former Gov. Ed Rendell and Sen. Bob Casey, have backed Clinton, and her fans said support remained strong despite a slide in her polling.

The state "knows that Hillary Clinton will continue to persevere," said Scott Freda, who led her Keystone State fund-raising team for the 2008 race. "She has a lot of friends and allies in Pennsylvania."

Among the area's Clinton donors were tennis legend Billie Jean King and NBA coach and former star player Jason Kidd, both New Jersey residents.

Also giving were some of less stellar reputation: former New Jersey Sen. Robert Torricelli, who left office after an ethics scandal, and Herbert Vederman, a former Philadelphia deputy mayor now facing corruption charges for allegedly bribing U.S. Rep. Chaka Fattah (D., Pa.). Vederman made the contribution on June 22, a little more than a month before he was indicted. He and Fattah are fighting the charges.

On both sides of the aisle, of course, were politically connected law firms, businesses, and contractors with interests before the government. Center City law firms such as Ballard Spahr and Cozen O'Connor and the cable giant Comcast pepper the "employer" columns of the donation reports.

Rubio posted a modest $5.7 million national haul in the last three months, but has secured powerful Pennslvania backers.

Bob Asher, an influential Keystone State Republican, signed on as Rubio's state finance director, saying the fresh-faced senator "represents the future" and can help the GOP expand its appeal to Latinos and African Americans.

"Politics is numbers," Asher said. "We've just got to get more people voting Republican if we're going to govern."

Rubio raised $83,450 in the region in September, the most of any candidate. Christie's team, meanwhile, has said he is "on track to be in the best position possible" by next year.

And of course, there is also a Christie-allied super PAC, which has raised $11 million.

Such supposedly independent groups, which can raise unlimited sums as long as they don't coordinate with candidates' campaigns, are a major factor not covered in the latest reports.

The local figures also likely undercount the amounts raised here by Carson, Cruz, and Sanders, because small donations aren't reported in detail.

The reports show how Philadelphia's corner of the commonwealth differs from its more conservative stretches.

Despite rating in the middle of the pack locally, Sanders, Carson, Cruz, and Fiorina, a former Hewlett-Packard executive, were near the top of the list statewide. Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, a Republican, trailed.

Geoffrey Cooper, a 90-year-old retiree from Bryn Athyn, donated $300 to Carson.

"He's not a politician," Cooper said. "He's a real conservative."

A Fiorina event at the Union League in Philadelphia this summer drew about six dozen supporters, according to those involved. But a fund-raiser at a home in Lancaster this month - after Fiorina began gaining ground - was packed, said Farah Jimenez, a member of Philadelphia's School Reform Commission and a Fiorina backer.

"She's obviously demonstrated her ability over the last two debates," Jimenez said.

Longtime Pennsylvania political consultant Charlie Gerow has signed with Fiorina's campaign.

In New Jersey, Bush, once the GOP front-runner, racked up $742,000, third-best after Christie and Clinton, with the help of prominent locals such as State Sen. Joseph Kyrillos and Lawrence Bathgate, a former Republican national finance chairman with long-standing Bush ties.

Despite sinking poll numbers, Bathgate said the former Florida governor has the GOP's best combination of "competency and electability."

Not all of the givers are wealthy contributors firing off four-figure checks. Some donate in $5, $10, and $20 increments whenever they can.

Janet Sadler, a retired administrative aide at Swarthmore College, gave Cruz 16 contributions, averaging about $32 apiece. She had never followed politics before this year, she said, but liked what she saw of Cruz on the news.

"He represents the Constitution; he represents what this country was made of," said Sadler, 70.

Paul Weidman, a Philadelphia mailman, has made 28 donations of between $3 and $274 to Sanders, carving out a bit on payday and responding to email solicitations.

"I know that most of [his] policy positions are a long-shot, but . . . if you don't put them out there, then they're never going to be a reality," said Weidman, 28.

Campaign-finance professionals had several theories about why less money is coming from the region compared with eight years ago.

Clinton joined this race much later, and - despite Sanders' early surge - many expect a less protracted primary than the 2008 clash between Clinton and then-Sen. Barack Obama.

On the GOP side, some donors may be waiting for the field to thin before committing, Bathgate said. "People are taking their time."

The candidates will also be coming back for more: Bush is expected in Philadelphia next month and Cruz has a New Jersey stop in December as the campaigns try to keep the money flowing.

jtamari@phillynews.com

@JonathanTamari

www.philly.com/capitolinq

StartText

Republican Debate

When: Oct. 28.

8 p.m. prime-time debate,

6 p.m. undercard debate.

TV: CNBC.

Where: University of Colorado in Boulder.

Who: Candidates with at least 3 percent polling average appear in prime time, the rest at the 6 p.m. debate.

Democratic Debate

When: Nov. 14

TV: CBS

Where: Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa

Moderator: John Dickerson

Who: Candidates to be determined

EndText