Romney's Bain Capital Fortune Dominates Republican Money Race

Republican presidential candidates raised more than $40 million in the third quarter, an amount top contender Mitt Romney may exceed with his personal checkbook. The donation figures may become a sidelight in the Republican race as Romney's loans to his campaign grow bigger each quarter, topping $17 million so far this year.The former buyout-firm executive and Massachusetts governor is worth as much as a quarter of a billion dollars, giving him a powerful advantage over rivals such as former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani and former Tennessee Senator Fred Thompson.

Lagging nationally, Romney has spent heavily on advertisements to climb to the top of polls in the early voting states of Iowa and New Hampshire. Romney augmented his $10 million in contributions in the three months through September with a personal loan of $8.5 million. That left his campaign with $9 million in the bank.

No Limit

The former head of Boston-based Bain Capital LLC hasn't set a limit on how much he will add to his campaign coffers, said Romney spokesman Kevin Madden. Romney is one of the few leading candidates in either party who is raising funds only for the primary election. He has spent more than $8 million on television ads, primarily in Iowa and New Hampshire, according to Evan Tracey, chief operating officer of TNS Media Intelligence/Campaign Media Analysis Group, an Arlington, Virginia, company that tracks such buys.

``Republicans are pretty much a one-sided story -- all Romney,'' Tracey said.

Like Obama and Clinton, who each have brought in more than $70 million for the primaries, Romney isn't dependent on a victory in Iowa for a surge of money to keep his campaign going. Romney has to be careful that he isn't portrayed as a wealthy politician trying to buy his way into office, said Julian Zelizer, a history and public affairs professor at Princeton University in New Jersey.

The former governor may be able to avoid that pitfall before the first set of contests because the fourth-quarter report isn't due to the Federal Election Commission until the end of January. That means Romney could write a big check anytime and not make it public for months.

Not all the candidates have given estimates for the three months through September. The full reports are due by Oct. 15.

Cash

Giuliani, the Republican frontrunner in national polls, finished the quarter with $16 million in cash, including $11 million for the primary elections. Thompson had $7 million in cash; McCain had $3.6 million.