Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders has unexpectedly managed to raise nearly as much money in the third quarter from small donations as front-runner Hillary Clinton has raised from deep-pocketed donors.

The Vermont senator's campaign said he had raised $26 million for his campaign from July to September, mostly from small donations given online, where $2 million was raised on the last day, highlighting the Democratic socialist's connection to grassroots Democrats, reported The Associated Press.

Clinton's campaign said she brought in $28 million, mostly from fundraisers hosted by big donors. Clinton's haul indicates that one of her biggest advantages - the ability to tap into one of the most successful fundraising networks in U.S. politics - is fading, according to The New York Times.

While Clinton held 58 fundraising events over the three-month period, Sanders held only seven. Sanders' insurgent campaign said the independent senator took in more than 1.3 million donations from a total of 650,000 individuals donors, but Clinton's campaign decided not to disclose how many total donors she has. Sanders also said he had $25 million in the bank at the end of September, but Clinton did not release this information either, according to The Washington Post.

As noted by political operative and analyst David Axelrod, best known as the chief strategist for President Obama's presidential campaign, "The # to keep an eye on now is cash on hand. Very possible [Sanders] has more than [Clinton]."

Team Clinton has set a goal of bringing in $100 million by the end of the year, which is necessary to fund the hundreds of staffers and huge infrastructure her team has laid out across the nation, according to the Washington Times.

Aides to Clinton said they were happy with the amount raised and that it was within their projections.

"We are thrilled and grateful for the support of hundreds of thousands of donors across the country, helping us raise a record $75 million in the first two quarters," campaign manager Robby Mook said in a statement. "Thanks to our supporters, we are able to meet our goals and build an organization that can mobilize millions of voters to ensure Hillary Clinton is their fighter in the White House."

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