John McCain will no longer accept public funding

February 11, 2008

John McCain is dropping his request for federal funds, choosing to rely on private fund-raising for the remainder of his party's presidential race.

The Republican presidential front-runner also picked up the endorsements of two major GOP figures Monday - religious conservative activist Gary Bauer and former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, the president's brother.

McCain had been eligible for $5.8 million in matching funds. He applied for them last summer, after a shakeup of top advisers and poor receipts left many observers writing off his campaign. Now the leading candidate for the Republican nomination, McCain notified the Federal Election Commission last week that he was withdrawing from the primary funding program without claiming any of the matching funds.

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