Anyone no how much the Liberals raised illegally via advertising firms??

I think it's important to point out that only the Liberal party had growth in both donations and number of donors over last year. In 2007 the Tories were about 10-1 in fundraising and now only 5 to 1 is pretty good by comparison. Money was up around 60% and donors went up over 130%, given that the NDP and Tories were both down year over year I think it is much better than your portrayal of the facts.

Its interesting that you want to defend the fundraising record of the Liberal party. Last year's fundraising was abominal and so to get an increase this year must be good news to the poor Liberal Party.

However, what this tells us is that the Liberal Party is on financial life support. They have not reformed the party's top down cumbersome management system as the other parties have done and so it continues to be a very expensive operation to run.

So what all this tells me is that with the Liberals treading water (to put it kindly) party operations are basically on a break even basis.

If the Libs go into an election they will have to borrow the $18 million to finance the campaign. Once the election is over they will have to repay the bank loan and that means the money given by the government will be used to repay debt which I assume the bank will take as security for the loan.

If fundraising continues to be an issue and they lose the next election where will the money come from to hold a leadership convention?

You're right hollinm, but I'll argue that it's been no secret that the Liberals have been a breath away from bankruptcy since the Sponsorship Scandal at the very latest.

The ongoing hardships that the Liberals have faced since then regarding fundraising have been embarrassments and have only further hurt their efforts. Look at the "Auctions" they've had. (BTW David, did you ever find out the results from that "Sky's the Limit" Auction they held?)

It therefore comes as no surprise that the Liberals are in no shape to mount any kind of campaign. Let's be honest, the Big Red Machine is out of gas and is about to be left at the side of the road. I have said all along that I think we'll carry through to October 2009 because quite frankly, the Liberals can't afford anything. With debts and interest piling up, fundraising at an all-time-low (or close to), and no coherent policy or position, Liberals would be destroyed in the next election. Probably very much like the PC's were on the Federal Scene not too long ago. Stephane Dion could become the Liberal Party's Joe Clark.

No, the Liberals are caught in a Catch 22. Go to an election now with soft support and bankrupt the party for good, or wait until the time is right for Canadians (read Liberals poll ratings) to go to an election and decimate their own credibility in the mean time.

I'm glad I'm not a Liberal.

The Conservative Party raised nearly $5-million in the first three months of 2008, more than twice as much as every other federal party combined.

Considering their proven track record of trying to break or bend the rules (ie. convention fees), is anyone looking into how the Conservatives are doing this. Something just doesn't smell right.

Robert, it's called organization and being in touch with (and listening to) the grassroots of the party. Those things tend to maintain steady support.

I would have thought that the NDP already knew this, or is it just the numbers that bother you so much?

"Now, to be fair to the Libs, some Liberal leadership candidates from last year are still raising money to pay off their campaigns and that would likely have sapped some of the party's ability to fundraise during the quarter."

If you look closely, the Liberal Leadership fundraising is included in the Quarterly Report, you just don't see it if you only look at the Summary. Check out the "Return Details - Part 2b - Statement of Directed Contributions for Transfer to a Leadership Contestant"

Leadership contestants raised $104,065.50 of which the party passed on $84,129.48 after taking their percentage. The Liberals are using directed donations in order to take advantage of tax credits.

I think its also worth noting that Liberal leadership candidates, with the exception of Bob Rae and Carolyn Bennett who have apparently cleared their debts, still owe almost $3 million. This money is due by June 3, or they will all have to request extensions. From the Star:

"Dion, who reported a debt of almost $850,000 last summer, brought in just over $12,000 in the first quarter of 2008 to help pay it off. Insiders say his debt as of June 3 may actually wind up being higher than $850,000, due to some unexpected bills and interest that's been piling up on his loans.

By contrast, Dion's deputy leader, Michael Ignatieff, pulled in almost $75,000. That doesn't include a splashy fundraising dinner last week that insiders expect netted at least $100,000.

Ignatieff wound up the leadership race with a debt of about $777,000. His campaign team estimated he had about $300,000 left to pay off before last week's dinner.

The returns show that Martha Hall Finlay raised $2,400 toward her original debt of $261,000. Gerard Kennedy, who wound up more than $500,000 in debt, raised $2,175.

Scott Brison reported raising only $191.40 while Ken Dryden reported a meagre $25.

Brison said the return doesn't include a recent event that raised $20,000. He said he's whittled his $150,000 debt down to about $80,000 and has a number of events scheduled over the next month to eliminate it.

Dryden said he's pared his $403,000 debt down to about $300,000. He said it's been difficult raising money for a past leadership contest when the party is fishing in the same pool for money to fight a future election.

Maurizio Bevilacqua, who ended the campaign with a $296,000 debt, pulled in $50 during the first three months of the year. Joe Volpe, who wound up $246,000 in debt, and Hedy Fry, who went $160,000 into the red, reported no donations."