South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott took in nearly $8.3 million during the third fundraising quarter, a major sum that highlights the massive finance network Scott is building ahead of a prospective 2024 presidential bid.
Scott has emerged as a fundraising powerhouse over the past year, winning over small- and large-dollar GOP donors alike. The senator, who is a heavy favorite to win reelection in 2022, has seen his profile rise since delivering the Republican Party’s response to President Joe Biden’s joint address to Congress in April. Scott has raised nearly $20 million over the course of the year and got support from over 82,000 donors during the third quarter, according to a person familiar with the figures.
Scott’s totals are sure to put him among the top fundraisers in either party over the last three months. As of Wednesday afternoon, the only candidate to release a higher third-quarter figure was Rep. Val Demings, the Democratic Senate candidate in Florida who announced raising $8.4 million. Full fundraising reports are set to be filed with the Federal Election Commission by Oct. 15.
During the second fundraising quarter, Scott reported raising $9.6 million — more than doubling the total of the next-highest Republican incumbent up for reelection in 2022, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio.
Scott, who is the only Black Republican in the Senate, had not previously been known as a major fundraiser. But over the past year Scott has waged a concerted effort to build his small-dollar fundraising operation, paying for a barrage of Facebook ads aimed at drawing in donors.
He has also begun to win over some of the party’s biggest donors, including tech titan Larry Ellison. The Oracle co-founder has contributed $10 million to the Opportunity Matters Fund, a super PAC aligned with the senator. The outfit has also received contributions from other big GOP donors, including hedge fund manager Dan Loeb, investor Bill Oberndorf and Las Vegas billionaire Steve Wynn.