FRANCE 24's Observers weigh in on the 2008 US presidential race.

U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama raised more than $150 million for his campaign in September, breaking the record he set the previous month, his campaign said on Sunday.

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Obama's prodigious fundraising has been a key in the race against Republican Sen. John McCain, allowing Obama to blanket the air waves with advertisements in the run-up to the Nov. 4 election.

The Obama campaign said it HAD 632,000 new donors in September to bring ITS total to 3.1 million. It said the average donation for the month was less than $100.

With more than $150 million in September, Obama more than doubled the $66 million he brought in for August, which had been a record.

Unlike McCain, Obama, an Illinois senator, chose not to accept public funding for his campaign, freeing him to raise millions privately.

Obama's campaign has purchased a half-hour television slot at prime-time on Oct. 29, six days before the election, to make a closing argument to the American people.

Obama, who was in North Carolina on Sunday to appear at a "Change We Need" rally, has shattered all records for campaign fundraising, in part due to his Internet presence.

Big donors also have been an important source of cash for his campaign. Last week, he spoke at a big fundraiser in New York that featured performances by rock legends Bruce Springsteen and Billy Joel.

Obama raked in $9 million last month at a pair of glitzy Hollywood fundraisers, including one where singer-actress Barbra Streisand performed.