WPRO News and the Associated Press
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) – Donors have given just $30,000 to Lincoln Chafee’s Democratic run for president. That’s leading Chafee to acknowledge that his Democratic competitor Bernie Sanders is filling the role Chafee had hoped for in the 2016 contest.
Chafee lent his campaign another $364,000, according to federal campaign finance filings.
The former Rhode Island governor trails by a wide margin in fundraising. Democratic front-runner Hillary Rodham Clinton’s campaign has raised $45 million since mid-April, while Sanders, a Vermont senator, has raised $15 million since he joined the race in late April.
In a statement, Chafee says he had thought “there was fundraising potential for an honest progressive candidate” but that “Sen. Sanders is filling that role at present.”
Chafee acknowledges his fundraising has to improve. A spokeswoman says he’s not questioning his viability.
