U.S. Sen. Cory Booker, trailing many of his rivals in the race for presidential campaign cash, got help Sunday from another New Jerseyan, rocker Jon Bon Jovi.
The musician, who earlier had given $2,800 to Booker’s presidential campaign and appeared at a fundraising event hosted by Gov. Phil Murphy, opened his East Hampton home Sunday to help Booker fill his campaign coffers.
U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris of California, another candidate for the 2020 Democratic nomination, also had a fundraiser scheduled for Sunday in the Hamptons. President Donald Trump visited there before a weekend stay at his Bedminster golf club earlier this month, raising $12 million for his re-election campaign and the Republican National Committee.
Booker’s campaign did not provide information about how much he raised, whether Bon Jovi performed, and what the senator told the well-heeled donors who attended.
This was at odds with the policy of the early frontrunner for the Democratic nomination, former Vice President Joe Biden, who allows reporters into his fundraising events.
Even before this event, Booker raised enough money from individual donors to qualify for the next two presidential debates in September and October.
From from April to June, he raised $4.5 million and entered July with $5.4 million in the bank. Biden, Harris, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, and Pete Buttigieg all reported raising more than twice as much money during the same three-month period.
Through June 30, Booker raised $12.4 million, including $2.7 million transferred from his Senate committee.
Jonathan D. Salant may be reached at jsalant@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JDSalant or on Facebook. Find NJ.com Politics on Facebook.
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