What to Know
- Cory Booker's presidential campaign manager says he needs to raise $1.7 million by Sept. 30 to remain competitive in the race
- Booker has qualified for a spot in the next debate, in October, but has lagged in fundraising
- The campaign manager said that without a fundraising boost, the campaign does "not see a legitimate long-term path forward"
Lagging in polling and fundraising, Democratic presidential candidate Cory Booker said Saturday said he may end his run unless donations from supporters increase quickly.
"If you believe in me, this is the time to help because without it we shouldn't be in this race," he told CNN.
His campaign manager, Addisu Demissie, said in a memo made public that the New Jersey senator needed to raise an additional $1.7 million by Sept. 30 to remain competitive in the crowded field of candidates seeking the nomination.
"If we're not able to build the campaign organization, which means raise the money that we need to win the nomination, Cory's not going to continue running and consuming resources that are better used on focusing on beating Donald Trump," he said.
With such a fundraising surge, the campaign does "not see a legitimate long-term path forward," according to the memo.
"This isn't an end-of-quarter stunt or another one of those memos from a campaign trying to spin the press," the memo said, offering "a real, unvarnished look under the hood of our operation."
Booker has qualified for a spot in the next debate, in October. But he struggled with fundraising and has yet to break through in either early state or national polls.
I’m running for president. Join me on this journey. https://t.co/fEDqOVIfwh pic.twitter.com/h1FTPUYRzo
— Cory Booker (@CoryBooker) February 1, 2019
"If we can't raise this $1.7 million, we're going to have to make the tough decisions that I think that any campaign that doesn't have a pathway to victory should make," Booker said.
Who’s Running for President in 2020?
The race for the 2020 presidential election is underway, and the field of Democratic candidates is packed. Those who have announced presidential bids include a vice president, senators, House members and three mayors. As for the GOP, a single Republican has announced his bid to challenge President Donald Trump for the party nomination: former Massachusetts Gov. Bill Weld, who ran for vice president (and lost) in 2016 on the Libertarian party ticket.
Click the photos to learn more
Updated Nov. 20, 2019
Note: Incorrect information about Michael Bennet’s cancer diagnosis and titles for Joe Sestak and William Weld have been revised on July 29, 2019, 3:17 p.m. ET.
Credit: Jo Bruni, Emma Barnett, Asher Klein, Dan Macht, Kelly Zegers / NBC; Photos: Getty Images
