Romney raises $111 million in first half of October

Mitt Romney's campaign boasts that it raised $111.8 million in the first 17 days of October. The number includes the $12 million the campaign said it raised in the first 48 hours after Romney's strong performance after the first presidential debate.

Romney spokeswoman Andrea Saul announced the news via Twitter.

During the entire month of September, Romney raised $170 million, which is the most of the campaign season. The campaign could surpass that number, however, if the campaign continues at this rate for the remainder of October.

Romney's fundraising numbers reflect joint fundraising by Romney and the Republican National Committee. The campaign says it has $169 million on hand to spend in the final sprint to Election Day.

The Obama campaign is expected to release its latest fundraising numbers later today. Their best fundraising month to date was last month, when the campaign raised $181 million.