BERNIE SANDERS, the socialist US presidential candidate, raised $6.5?million (pounds 4.5?million) the day after his victory in New Hampshire in contributions averaging $34 each.
Mr Sanders, 74, beat Hillary Clinton, his rival for the Democratic Party nomination, 60 per cent to 38 per cent in the second state to vote.
That spurred a surge in donations over the next 24 hours in which around 190,000 people made contributions - at one point crashing his website.
Mr Sanders's insurgent campaign has so far received 3.7 million contributions from 1.3 million people. Around 74 per cent of his money has come from people donating less than $200 each.
By the same point in the 2008 election, Mr Obama had raised a similar amount, around $100?million, but only 22 per cent of it was from grassroots supporters giving less than $200.
Tad Devine, Mr Sanders' senior adviser, said the donations had "allowed us to become a lot more ambitious."
The number of campaign staff has been increased in the next two states to vote, Nevada and South Carolina, and Mr Sanders' campaign is already running television advertising in states that go to the polls in March including Colorado, Minnesota, and Oklahoma.
"But we are very realistic about what we're up against," said Mr Devine. "The party establishment is still with Hillary Clinton."
Mr Sanders's 24-hour surge in donations came after he said during his victory speech in New Hampshire: "Help us raise the money we need to take the fight to Nevada, South Carolina and beyond, whether it's 10 bucks, 20 bucks or 50 bucks."
His website promptly crashed and at one point there were 2,689 donations in a single minute.
Mr Sanders has pledged to reform America's election financing system which he claims allows "billionaires to buy elections".
Latest figures show he has raised $20?million compared to Mrs Clinton's $15?million in January. Her national finance director sent out an urgent email to supporters, saying: "We're being outraised by our opponent. This should be a very loud wake-up call."