Bundlers, including Charlie Crist, raise $180 million for Obama
WASHINGTON — More than 120 new fundraisers who bundle large checks joined President Obama’s reelection effort in the third quarter of the year, including former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, former Republican Gov. Charlie Crist of Florida and singer Gwen Stefani.
The new fundraisers bring the number of bundlers working on Obama’s behalf to 758, according to a list released Friday evening by the campaign.
Together, they raised at least $180 million through the end of September, at least one-fifth of the $947 million Obama and his fundraising committees have brought in so far, according to a Los Angeles Times analysis. The campaign reports broad fundraising ranges for the bundlers, not exact totals, so the actual amount could be far higher.
GRAPHIC: Presidential campaign contributions, by state
Mitt Romney has declined to release the names of fundraisers bundling money for his campaign, other than those who are lobbyists, which he is required to disclose.
Albright raised between $200,000 and $500,000. Crist, who announced his support for Obama in August, has raised between $100,000 and $200,000.
Some of the newest bundlers have already raised more than $500,000 for the campaign, including Stefani, designer Tom Ford and trial lawyer Mikal Watts.
PHOTOS: President Obama’s past
Stanley Grinstein and Sidney Felsen, co-founders of a Los Angeles graphic arts business, were also each listed as raising more than $500,000, as was Furkan Kosar, leader of a Turkish American group.
David Blood of London, a partner with Al Gore in an investment firm, raised between $100,000 and $200,000.
Venture capitalist and philanthropist Cynthia Stroum, a major Democratic fundraiser, also showed up on the list as raising at least $200,000. After she bundled more than $800,000 for Obama’s 2008 White House bid and inauguration, he appointed her the U.S. ambassador to Luxembourg, a post she left in January 2011 after a rocky tenure.
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