WASHINGTON - Presidential candidate Mitt Romney's fundraising dipped to $6.5 million in January, as he struggled to fend off his Republican rivals in early voting states, according to figures released Monday evening by his campaign.
Meanwhile, former Pennsylvania senator Rick Santorum, who is now leading Romney in national polls, had his best fundraising month of the campaign. He raised $4.5 million, more than twice the amount he collected in all of 2011. Former House speaker Newt Gingrich raised more - nearly $5.6 million in January - but ended the month with nearly as much debt as available cash.
Overall, Romney, who has led GOP fundraising, has collected $64 million for his second presidential bid - trailing behind the $151 million raised by President Obama to date. Romney, who amassed millions running a venture capital firm, did not dip into his fortune for a campaign loan. He ended January with nearly $7.7 million cash in the bank.
Romney finance chairman Spencer Zwick said fundraising remains on track. "We are the only campaign who has the organization and resources to go the distance of a long primary process," he said in a statement. "We know there is a long road ahead, and we will remain steady."
The disclosure came Monday as Republican candidates and new outside political groups, known as super PACs, began filing reports detailing how much they raised and spent in January amid the early weeks of the GOP nomination battle.
The documents demonstrate the power of super PACs to shape the presidential contest. Super PACs supporting Romney and Gingrich each raised more than the candidates did in January.
Restore Our Future, the pro-Romney super PAC, spent nearly $14 million in January as it blistered his opponents with negative ads in three early voting states, the reports show.
The super PAC ended the month with $16.3 million in the bank, demonstrating it has the resources to continue the barrage against Romney's rivals ahead of the Michigan and Arizona primaries Feb. 28 and Super Tuesday's contests in nearly a dozen states next month.
Winning Our Future, a super PAC aiding Gingrich, raised $11 million in January, with $10 million coming from casino magnate Sheldon Adelson and his wife, Miriam. It ended the month with $2.4 million in the bank.
Texas Rep. Ron Paul announced he collected $4.5 million in January, while a super PAC supporting his campaign reported raising nearly $2.4 million last month. Most of the money that went to the pro-Paul super PAC, Endorse Liberty, came from PayPal founder Peter Thiel. He gave $1.7 million in January.
Other Republicans had not reported their January fundraising total as of early Monday evening. Romney has consistently outraised his Republican rivals even as Gingrich and Santorum have taken turns leading the polls.
President Obama previously reported raising $29.1 million for his campaign and the Democratic National Committee last month. Nearly $11.9 million of that amount went into his campaign account - a significant drop from the $36.8 million he collected for his campaign in January 2008.
The filings show the pro-Romney super PAC has relied on a relatively narrow group of individuals and companies to help its activities. Nearly $5 million of the $6.6 million Restore Our Future raised last month came from 25 corporations and individuals who donated at least $100,000 each.
Three donated $500,000 each: Alliance Coal CEO Joseph Craft of Tulsa; Bruce Kovner, a New York hedge fund founder; and David Lisonbee, who runs 4Life Research, a wellness supplement company in Utah.
Other donors to the pro-Romney super PAC have ties to the consumer-loan industry. RTTTA, a Provo, Utah, corporation that gave $75,000 to the super PAC, is run by J. Todd Rawle, listed in Arizona secretary of State filings as an officer of two payday lending firms. Select Management Resources Inc., a Georgia-based company, donated $100,000. It operates LoanMax, which specializes in auto title loans.
Super PACs are barred from coordinating with campaigns, but many are run by close allies of the candidates and their financial support has come at crucial moments in the campaign. Restore Our Future spent $9.4 million against Gingrich in Florida, helping Romney win there.
Other notable Restore Our Future donors include: Texas billionaire Harold Simmons, who gave $100,000 to the Romney super PAC last month. Simmons, a veteran Republican fundraiser, helped fund Swift Boat ads in 2004 attacking Democrat John Kerry's Vietnam record. Hewlett-Packard CEO Meg Whitman, who ran unsuccessfully for California governor in 2010, also donated $100,000.
The reports filed Monday also highlight the ability of a single donor to fuel a super PAC. Jon Huntsman Sr., the billionaire father of former Utah governor Jon Huntsman, donated another $335,000 in January to Our Destiny PAC, a super PAC that supported his son's unsuccessful presidential campaign.
In all, the elder Huntsman gave $2.2 million to the super PAC, nearly 70% of the money it collected.
USA Today