By Greg Giroux, CQ Staff

The Republican National Committee (RNC) raised $15.4 million in March, according to a report filed Friday that covered financial activity during a period in which Arizona Sen. John McCain became the party’s presumed presidential nominee.

The RNC, which is now formally coordinating fundraising activity with McCain’s presidential campaign, once again outraised its partisan counterpart, the Democratic National Committee (DNC), which will have as its primary function assisting either Barack Obama of Illinois or Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York once the Democratic presidential nomination is decided. The DNC took in $6 million in March, according to its report to the Federal Election Commission.

The RNC, which has outraised the DNC in each of the 15 months in the 2007-08 election cycle, began April with $31.1 million left to spend — funds that it will spend primarily if not exclusively to assist McCain’s White House bid. The DNC had $5.3 million left in its account at the end of last month. Both national party committees are debt-free.

The RNC has such a big lead in fundraising in part because the DNC, under the chairmanship of Howard Dean, is focusing more of its resources on strengthening or rebuilding the Democratic Party’s infrastructure in all 50 states. The DNC also is competing for funds with Obama and Clinton, who have shattered fundraising records for presidential candidates, and also with the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which have far outraised their GOP counterpart organizations.

Republican National Committee (RNC)

• March 2008 receipts: $15.4 million

• Cycle-to-date receipts: $123.5 million

• March 2008 expenditures: $9.3 million

• Cycle-to-date expenditures: $95.5 million

• Cash, March 31: $31.1 million

• Debts, March 31: $0

Notable contributions from individuals

• Alan I. Casden, chairman and chief executive officer of The Casden Company: $28,500