Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie announced Wednesday that he has secured over 40,000 individual donations to his campaign, surpassing the necessary threshold to qualify for next month’s first Republican primary debate.
“I’m happy to report that last night we exceeded 40,000 unique donors in just 35 days,” Christie stated on CNN. “We have donors in every state in America, with over 200 donors in 36 states.”
Christie also mentioned that when he ran for the Republican presidential nomination eight years ago, he had only amassed 5,000 donors within the first 35 days of his campaign.
“There is widespread support for my candidacy,” the former governor added. “We are extremely pleased, and this bodes well for the Republican Party, as it means I will be present on the debate stage.”
The first Republican primary debate is scheduled for August 23 in Milwaukee, and candidates must meet the donor requirements and garner at least 1% support in three qualifying polls. Former President Donald Trump, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, and entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy have all indicated that they have met these thresholds.
Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) also revealed this week that he has surpassed 53,000 donors.