Florida Sen. Marco Rubio’s campaign announced a $12 million haul, Monday, enough to place him in the top-tier of Republican contenders when it comes to fundraising.
Combined with the $31.9 million two Rubio independent groups — Conservative Solutions PAC and Conservative Solutions Project — that puts the total for Rubio and his supporters at $43.9 million.
The sum is nowhere near the combined $114 million Jeb Bush’s campaign and super PAC announced last week, but it does place Rubio neck and neck with Senate colleague Ted Cruz, whose supporters pulled in a combined $50 million through the end of the latest fundraising period.
The Rubio team has already begun reserving airtime in a trio of important Republican primary states, spending $10 million to lock in crucial airtime.
Rubio’s leadership PAC, Reclaim America, reported collecting $1.2 million from donors. But that money is used to support other candidates, not Rubio directly.