U.S. Republicans raise record money for 2016 presidential cycle

The Republican Party announced on Wednesday that it had raised more than 135 million U.S. dollars through the end of March, hitting a new high for a presidential cycle.

"The record-breaking level of grassroots support we've both gotten this cycle is powering our ability to build a robust field organization in every battleground state," said Reince Priebus, chairman of the Republican National Committee (RNC).

The RNC's war chest for the 2016 presidential campaign has surged to 135.4 million dollars, including 11.5 million dollars added last month.

The committee, however, admitted so far it only has 16.2 million dollars on hand, with its debt remaining at 1.8 million dollars.

Donald Trump, the party's front-runner, has been largely financing his primary bid through a series of personal loans, according to a report of Wednesday's The Hill, an influential American political newspaper.

The brash New York billionaire real estate developer has actually received more than 2 billion dollars worth of free airtime, according to The New York Times estimates.

A victorious Trump coming out of the Republican National Convention would have a hard time raising the money he needs to beat the Democratic presidential nominee in November, said the The Hill report.

Anti-Trump Republicans have long suggested that if Trump falls short of the 1,237 delegates needed to seal the Republican nomination, he might be stopped at the first ballot at the nominating convention in July. Endit