"Obama, Romney outpace rivals in WA money race"

Seattle P-I (AP):

Sen. Barack Obama is leading all other presidential candidates in Washington state fundraising and has nearly twice as much money as his closest Democratic rival.

Mitt Romney, the Republican former Massachusetts governor, ranks second in the statewide money race and also has a commanding lead over his GOP rivals.

Federal campaign reports for the first half of the year show that Obama, D-Ill., raised $798,373 in Washington.

Former Democratic vice presidential candidate John Edwards was second among Democrats, with $424,327. Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., was a distant third, raising $270,440.

Both Edwards and Obama have made personal appearances in Washington this year, while former President Bill Clinton hosted a fundraiser for his wife's campaign.

Romney's campaign reported raising $483,760 in the state through June. Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., collected $159,011 from Washington donors; Rudy Giuliani, the former New York mayor, raised $136,301.

Romney, McCain and Giuliani have all come to Washington to raise money for their campaigns.