Hillary campaign still owes $6.4 mn debt

Secretary of State-designate Hillary Clinton had $6.4 million in campaign debt at end of November, nearly down by half since June.

US Secretary of State-designate Hillary Clinton had USD 6.4 million in presidential campaign debt at the end of November, nearly down by half since June, a media report said on Monday .

The amount, though still significant, represents the lowest level of debt the New York senator’s failed presidential campaign has reported this year, according to a report filed Saturday with the Federal Election Commission.

Clinton’s campaign debt reached its peak, USD 12 million, at the end of June and has gradually fallen since then, CNN reported.

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Clinton, 62 said she hopes to pay off her debt before her possible confirmation as secretary of state under the incoming administration of president-elect Barack Obama.

Clinton has also officially forgiven the USD 13.2 million she personally loaned her campaign. Under the McCain-Feingold campaign finance law, presidential candidates who loan their campaigns money from personal funds may only be paid back if they do so by the national party convention – in this case, the Democratic National Convention held last August in Denver.

Clinton began November with USD 985,000 in her campaign account and raised nearly USD 290,000 by the end of the month. Her campaign paid out USD 1.2 million, mainly to unpaid vendors, ending the month with USD 188,000 in the bank.

The USD 6.4 million in remaining debt is owed to a total of 16 creditors.

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The largest unpaid amount is owed to Penn, Schoen & Berland, a political consulting and polling firm that advised Clinton during her presidential bid against Obama.