Crist raises fraction of rival Rubio’s fundraising total over last three months

Two days ago, U.S. Senate candidate Marco Rubio announced that he had raised $3.6 million in the first three months of the new year, significantly more than the total amount he had raised for his campaign in 2009. Rubio’s challenger for the Republican nomination in the Florida race, Governor Charlie Crist, held off until Friday night to announce his first quarter fundraising figures, and now we know why.

Crist, who trails Rubio by a significant margin in recent polls, announced late yesterday evening that his campaign raised just $1.1 million for the three-month fundraising period that ended last week.

The Orlando Sentinel reports that he’s still looking on the bright side:

After speaking to supporters in The Villages community Friday night, Crist had little to say about his fundraising. “I’m very pleased of what we’ve got in the bank,” the governor said.

Overall, the Crist campaign still is sitting on a mountain of cash — $10 million raised, and $7.5 million in the bank — but a lot of that is money raised for a general election that’s looking much fuzzier for Crist.

“Even with a limited fundraising program this quarter due to the governor’s busy work schedule during session, we were still able to raise a tremendous amount of money,” Crist campaign manager Eric Eikenberg said in a statement.

“We look forward to continuing to educate voters about the differences in this race between a true public servant and someone who uses public office for private gain, and we are grateful we have the resources to get out the governor’s message of less taxes, less spending, and more freedom.”

Rubio, the former state House speaker buoyed by a wave of voter frustration and Crist’s embrace of the federal stimulus bailout, has surged ahead of the governor in the polls.

The momentum also has translated into cash: Rubio’s camp announced earlier this week he had doubled his previous best quarter by raking in $3.6 million from January through March, giving him $7 million raised in total, with virtually all of it available to spend for the Aug. 24 primary.