Clinton spends $18m in first months of campaign

Hillary Clinton spent more than $18m (€16.5m) and hired hundreds of employees in the first three months of her presidential campaign, creating a national operation that vastly out-paces her rivals in both parties.

She has the money for it, having raised more than $46m for the Democratic primary contest.

However, building a campaign Goliath has not come cheap. Clinton spent more than $5.9m on 343 employees, $700,000 on computers and other equipment, and nearly half a million renting offices, including a 7,430sq m Brooklyn campaign headquarters.

Beyond paying for salaries and space, her campaign purchased lists of voters in four early primary states, paid six figures to a super PAC (committee) devoted to defending her record and spent heavily on building a digital team, according to campaign finance documents filed with federal regulators.

It’s a strategy aimed at a contest that’s nearly a year away.

The overwhelming favourite for her party’s nomination, Clinton and her team have set their sights on building the massive infrastructure they will need for the presidential election.

The outlay is nearly four times what Clinton spent in the first three months of her last presidential campaign, when she faced a far more competitive primary race against then-Senator Barack Obama.

All told, Clinton has spent a far greater portion of her early funds during this campaign than she did eight years ago.