Giuliani, Romney File Fundraising Disclosure Reports

WASHINGTON _ Former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani ran a frugal presidential campaign during the first three months of this year, leaving him with nearly as much money in the bank for next year’s Republican presidential primaries as the party’s most formidable fundraiser, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

Giuliani reported $10.8 million in cash available for the primary season from contributions of $13.6 million for those elections as of March 31. Romney showed a balance of $11.9 million from $20.7 million in contributions.

The major presidential candidates all had announced their fundraising totals at the beginning of April, in several cases showing that they had already brought in eye-popping amounts of money that would have been unimaginable at such an early stage in prior campaigns.

But Giuliani and Romney were the first candidates to file required disclosure reports on fundraising during the first quarter of the year. Those reports will trickle in up until a deadline at midnight on Sunday, offering greater detail on each campaign’s financial backers and its spending patterns.

Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., previously considered a front-runner and now trailing Giuliani in the polls, reported earlier this month that he had raised $12.5 million. Political professionals widely anticipate that his campaign will show a high spending rate, potentially leaving his financial resources far below his major rivals. McCain recently revamped his fundraising operation.

The Giuliani campaign, the first to file its report on Friday, portrayed his strong bank balance as a sign of thrift to appeal to fiscal conservatives.

“The numbers speak for themselves. We are running an efficient campaign and our fundraising efforts are strong,” said Roy Bailey, Giuliani’s national finance chairman.

The campaign also showed considerable momentum in its fundraising, with $11.4 million _ the bulk of its receipts _ coming in during March.

Both campaigns also drew from financial support from the candidate’s other resources. Romney loaned his campaign $2.35 million from his personal fortune. Giuliani transferred $1.85 million left over from a 2000 bid for the U.S. Senate.

The two campaigns also showed a broad base of financial support, with Romney receiving contributions from more than 32,000 people and Giuliani from 28,000 donors.

A spokesman for Democratic candidate Barack Obama said that the Illinois senator had refunded more than $50,000 in contributions from 49 donors after discovering they were lobbyists. In some cases, the lobbyists’ names will appear on the campaign’s disclosure statement because their identities were not discovered until after March 31, the campaign said.

Obama has repeatedly said he will not accept campaign contributions from registered federal lobbyists or federal political action committees, a policy also adopted by Democratic candidate John Edwards.

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