Klobuchar reports surge in donations since New Hampshire debate, primary

Sen. Amy Klobuchar holds a microphone, smiling.
Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Amy Klobuchar speaks during a campaign event on Feb. 10 in Keene, N, H.
Scott Eisen | Getty Images

Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar says her Democratic presidential campaign has raised $12 million over the past week, citing greater voter interest after her performance in New Hampshire.

The Minnesota senator told ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday that she is benefiting from a surge of people who have discovered her campaign after the New Hampshire debate on Feb. 7 and a better-than-expected third-place finish in the state’s primary.

In comparison, Klobuchar reported bringing in $11.4 million total for the last three months of 2019.

She's billing the fundraising support as momentum that will allow her to be competitive on the airwaves heading into the Nevada caucus and Super Tuesday contests in early March.

Klobuchar said that when she announced her candidacy, many people counted her out — but as voters get to know her, they relate to what her campaign is focused on. She said that campaign message is about “bringing back decency to the White House, and most importantly, having a president that can actually put herself in the shoes of other people in this country.”

But after focusing much of her campaign on the first two voting states — Iowa and New Hampshire, both predominantly white — she's now navigating a much more diverse electorate, where some of her moderate positions and willingness to vote with her Republican colleagues could be a liability.

Klobuchar also faces a challenge because she is not well known in Nevada. That means she now has less than a week to introduce herself to voters and to explain her past positions to people who may be hearing about them, and her, for the first time.

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