Rick Perry reports raising $17 million for presidential run

For whatever troubles dog his run for the White House, Texas Gov. Rick Perry will have the resources in the short term to fight back. His campaign announced Wednesday morning that it raised $17 million in the third quarter fundraising period, a total likely to lead the pack of GOP contenders.

A statement from Perry’s campaign pointed out that because Perry only declared his candidacy on Aug. 13, that cash haul was accumulated in 49 of the 92 days in the period.

The campaign said it received donations from all 50 states and that more than half the donors were from outside Texas. With spending factored in, the campaign ends the third quarter with $15 million in cash on hand, all but $50,000 of which is available to spend in the primary.

“The generous contributions from Americans across the nation prove the overwhelming support for Gov. Perry’s principled, conservative leadership and vision to get America working again,” Perry campaign manager Rob Johnson said in a statement. “Gov. Perry deeply appreciates the energetic support and hard work of the thousands of Republican volunteers and activists who’ve helped us build a strong and growing organization in just seven weeks.”

Perry’s total is shy of the $18.2 million that Mitt Romney raised in his debut fundraising period. Romney has not yet announced his total for the third quarter, but reports estimate the total in the $11-13 million range.

The candidates have until Oct. 15 to file their fundraising totals with the Federal Election Commission.