Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images
2020 candidate Andrew Yang's campaign says it raised $10 million in 2019's third quarter, according to Politico.
Why it matters: Yang's Q3 report is more than triple the $2.8 million he raised in the second quarter — a push powered by some strong debate performances that elevated his national profile.
The state of play: Yang outpaced Sen. Cory Booker's $6 million and came close to Sen. Kamala Harris' $11.6 million.
- But Yang's Q3 performance is still far outside the top tier of fundraisers in the Democratic field. So far, Pete Buttigieg has reported a Q3 haul of $19.1 million, topped only by Sen. Bernie Sanders' $25.3 million.
By the numbers: Yang's campaign said nearly 300,000 people have donated — almost double the threshold required to qualify for the November debate.
Context: Yang's campaign told Politico that it received $1 million in the 72 hours after the September debate in which he announced that he was giving away $120,000 to 10 families over a year to promote his signature campaign proposal: universal basic income, branded by Yang as the "freedom dividend."
- It's still not entirely clear how Yang's $120,000 give away fits with federal election rules, but the candidate is unlikely to encounter any problems given that internal Federal Election Commission turmoil has left the body unable to establish a quorum.
Go deeper: Andrew Yang gets media cold shoulder