At a time when public support for the Occupy Wall Street crowd is growing, Mitt Romney has emerged as the favorite candidate of those who occupy the suites and cubicles at the big banks and investment houses of lower Manhattan.
According to a new analysis by the Center for Responsive Politics, Wall Street and the financial sector rank among the top three donors for all the Republican presidential candidates, and stands as the No. 1 sector for three of them.
The finance sector accounts for more than 23 percent of Romney’s total war chest, more than any other candidate.
Romney, a former executive at Bain Capital, has collected more than $7.5 million from interests within that sector since he launched his campaign earlier this year, according to the center’s preliminary analysis of the latest campaign finance reports. Overall, Romney has raised more than $32.2 million for his 2012 presidential effort.
The three presidential contenders who rely the most on Wall Street largesse are Romney, former Sen. Rick Santorum and former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman.
The finance, insurance and real estate sector, known as the FIRE sector, ranks as the No. 2 source of campaign cash for Texas Gov. Rick Perry, former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, Rep. Michele Bachmann and Georgia businessman Herman Cain.
Even for Rep. Ron Paul, who has relied the least upon the financial sector these financial interests still rank as his No. 3 backer, according to the center’s analysis.
Overall, the FIRE sector has contributed about $16 million to all presidential candidates since the race began earlier this year, according to the center’s research.
The study also took a look at President Obama’s relationship with Wall Street.
Romney has received nearly twice as much as Obama from the FIRE sector, but Obama has raised about $3.9 million from the finance crowd, — about 4.4 percent of his overall $89 million war chest.
Here is a Center for Responsive Politics chart that displays the situation:
During his 2008 presidential bid, the finance sector donated more than $42 million to Obama’s campaign, and Wall Street interests alone contributed more than $15 million. Since then, as president, Obama pushed through financial regulatory reform legislation, which he has touted as containing the “strongest consumer protections in history” — much to the consternation of the finance community.
While Obama’s relationship with Wall Street has cooled over time, Romney has collected about twice as much as the president from commercial banks — and more than three times as much as Perry. Romney has raised $523,250 from commercial banking interests, while Obama has raised $254,250 and Perry has raised $161,400.
As for the dynamics within the GOP race, Romney has raised nearly four times as much from these interests as Perry. Nevertheless, FIRE still accounts for more than $1 out of every $9 Perry has collected. These interests have given Perry about $2 million, out of the $17.2 million he has raised from all sources.
Romney’s take is concentrated heavily in the world of Wall Street as opposed to insurance firms or real estate moguls. The securities and investment industry alone accounts for $1 out of every $9 Romney has raised: more than $3.56 million.
Noticeably, employees of Goldman Sachs — which has been scrutinized for its role in the 2008 financial crisis and was forced to pay a record $550 million settlement last year as part of a fraud case involving one of the firm’s subprime mortgage products — rank as Romney’s No. 1 campaign contributors.
Goldman Sachs employees, along with their spouses, have contributed $352,200 to Romney, according to the center’s research. That’s more than seven times the amount they’ve given to Obama.
Additionally, Bank of America — which has recently drawn ire from politicians, including Obama, for its proposed fee on debit cards — has similarly favored Romney with its campaign contributions. BofA employees have donated $112,500 to Romney, with $48,800 of that sum coming during the third quarter, according to the Center’s research.
Bank of America ranks as Romney’s No. 9 contributor, while Romney has also received the most money among all the presidential candidates from Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup.