Cory Booker May Drop Out Of Presidential Race If He Doesn’t Raise $1.7 Million In 10 Days

Last updated on July 18th, 2023 at 11:32 am

The presidential campaign of Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) says that without a major cash infusion before the end of the month, they don’t have a viable path forward in the Democratic primary.

NBC News reported:

Sen. Cory Booker must raise nearly $2 million in the next 10 days or the presidential candidate has no “legitimate long-term path forward,” according to a memo to staff from the campaign manager obtained by NBC News.

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The struggling candidate’s campaign manager, Addisu Demissie, warned that after weaker-than-expected fundraising in the early part of September, the campaign needs to rake in another $1.7 million before the last day of the financial quarter on Sept. 30.

“Without a fundraising surge to close out this quarter, we do not see a legitimate long-term path forward,” Demissie wrote in the Saturday memo to staff and supporters. “The next 10 days will determine whether Cory Booker can stay in this race.”

The Booker campaign emphasized that they have enough money to keep going, but they don’t have the cash to expand their operation before early voting, so this isn’t one of those annoying the sky is falling emails that the Democratic Party and candidates always send as a fundraising deadline approaches.

The Booker team also admitted a reality of the Democratic race. There are only four campaigns with the money to build a long-term primary operation. They are Joe Biden, Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders, and Pete Buttigieg.

It would be a loss for Democrats if Sen. Booker left the race. He is well received on the campaign trail, but that reception hasn’t translated into high poll numbers or growing fundraising. Rank and file Democrats seem to like Booker, but not enough to put him in the top tier. One gets the sense that Cory Booker missed his presidential window and that his real opportunity was in 2016.

Should Booker end his campaign, he would be the highest polling Democrat to do so yet, and likely the beginning of the next wave of candidates to quit before Iowa.



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