BOSTON (AP) ? She's yet to say whether she'll run, but a group working to support Hillary Rodham Clinton's prospective presidential bid raised more than $1 million in June alone.
The Ready for Hillary super PAC has accepted donations exceeding $1.25 million since beginning to raise money in earnest this spring, an official with the group confirmed Tuesday. The figure includes more than $1 million last month as the operation begins to ramp up.
The figures will be in the group's financial report on Wednesday. The official wasn't authorized to discuss by name the contents of the financial report ahead of its release and spoke on the condition of anonymity.
Clinton, who resigned as secretary of state in February, has not announced whether she will seek the presidency in 2016. But the super PAC dedicated to encouraging her to run has attracted several prominent Democratic donors and campaign operatives in recent weeks.
The official says that Ready for Hillary will report roughly $1 million in the bank after expenses, with three-quarters of all expenses focused on digital advertising to help build its email list and social media capacity. The organization has already collected donations from all 50 states, according to the official.
Clinton is not formally connected to the group, which can raise and spend unlimited amounts of money. She has been making public appearances and working on a book since leaving the State Department.
The activity comes more than three years before the next presidential election, although both sides are actively working to influence Clinton's standing in the race.
Earlier in the month, Ready for Hillary announced the hiring of a Democratic firm called 270 Strategies to oversee grassroots organizing, volunteer training and recruitment. The move helped improve the legitimacy of the group among some skeptical donors. The firm, started by top aides in President Barack Obama's last election, is working on a plan to expand the operation across the country.
Republicans, too, are in the early stages of an effort to chip away at Clinton's record.
American Crossroads, the GOP group tied to Republican strategist Karl Rove, released a web video in May that suggested Clinton was less than truthful in the Benghazi case, an episode they noted happened "all under Hillary Clinton's watch." An independent review last year blamed the State Department for inadequate security but largely absolved Clinton of wrongdoing.
Separately, American Rising, a Republican super political action committee led by former Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney's campaign manager, created the Stop Hillary PAC and has been raising money off a potential Clinton campaign.
One email request from the co-founder of the group warned that "massive forces are aligning to begin a coronation of 'President Hillary.'"
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ap-source-hillary-clinton-group-raises-1-million-205220408.html
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