A spike from April's total; dinner contests help fill campaign coffers...President Obama traveled the country in May to attend fundraising events, and he collected more than $60 million for the month, campaign staff announced Thursday morning on Twitter. A jump upward from April's take, the total came primarily from small donations, and includes money raised both by the campaign and by the Democratic National Committee, according to campaign officials. (Above: The President in Beverly Hills on Wednesday at an LGBT-themed fundraiser)
“The campaign raised more than $60 million across committees in May,” wrote @BarackObama. “Thanks to everyone who chipped in.”
April's total fundraising was $43.6 million, a decrease from March.
More than 572,000 people donated to Obama 2012 in May, and more than 147,000 of them donated for the first time, aides wrote on Twitter. The average donation was $54.94, with 98% of the donations less than $250 in May.
Online fundraising contests using celebrity and presidential star power have boosted donations, with supporters being asked to drop as little as $3 into campaign coffers for the chance to attend events such as the May 10th dinner at George Clooney's Los Angeles home, this week's 'Evening with Two Presidents' with former President Bill Clinton in New York, and the fifth Dinner with Barack contest, which is currently accepting entries. President Obama travels to New York next week for a dinner at the home of Sex and the City star Sarah Jessica Parker.
President Obama was in Beverly Hills on Wednesday night for two LGBT-themed fundraisers that included celebrity and entertainment industry support. There was a big bash at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel that featured performances by the cast of Glee, and a $40,000 after party for 70 guests at the Beverly Hills home of Glee creator Ryan Murphy.
The President rubbed elbows with Reese Witherspoon, Julia Roberts, Cher, Jane Lynch, Ellen DeGeneres, Jesse Tyler Ferguson of Modern Family, Star Trek's George Takei, Oscar winning screenwriter Dustin Lance Black, Lance Bass, Will & Grace co-creator Max Mutchnick, incoming president of the Human Rights Campaign Chad Griffin; Peter Roth, the CEO of Warner Brothers Television; actors Barry Karas and Pauley Perrette, Banana Republic/Gap Inc. president Jack Calhoun and HBO executive Michael Lombardo.
*AP/pool photo
