Democratic presidential nominee Sen. Barack Obama added $66 million to his campaign war chest in August and added 500,000 new donors, the Obama camp announced Sunday.

The August haul broke Obama’s previous record of a $55 million month and set a record for the amount raised by any presidential candidate in the same timeframe.

Many donations flowed into the campaign’s coffers as the Illinois senator formally accepted the Democratic nomination for president at Invesco Field in Denver on Aug. 28. An estimated 40 million viewers tuned in to watch his acceptance speech, according to the New York Times.

“The 500,000 new donors to the Obama campaign demonstrate just how strongly the American people are looking to kick the special interests out and change Washington,” Obama campaign manager David Plouffe said in a press statement.

Obama’s aides also noted that financing continued to pick up after Republican nominee Sen. John McCain announced the selection of his running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin. McCain’s pick was credited as drawing in large campaign donations for his ticket — the McCain team reported raising its own record of $47 million in August.

Although Obama has consistently raised more per month than McCain, the Arizona senator will be accepting $84 million in government funding, an option Obama has declined.

McCain “can also count on about $100 million that Republican operatives say the Republican Party will report having on hand at the beginning of September,” the Wall Street Journal reported.

As of Sept. 1, Republicans reported having about $200 million in cash on hand, according to the Journal. “The Democratic total as of that date appears to have been roughly half that.”

Still, Obama’s haul can be seen as a positive indicator for the Democrats, especially since most of their total 2.5 million donors have not neared their $2,300 donation limits.

Even former Bush political strategist Karl Rove said Obama’s donations “will give Democrats for at least the second presidential election in a row a financial advantage in the fall campaign” on Fox News Sunday. “Last time around, it was about a $121-million advantage over the combined spending of the Republicans. I suspect it won’t be large this time around, but it will be approaching the $100 million mark.”

Along with their rapid fundraising, the Obama camp has been spending at a hasty pace. The Wall Street Journal reported that the senator has about 2,500 employees on his payroll.

“In July and August, traditionally a relative slow period for politicking, the Obama campaign was spending about $55 million a month,” the Journal reported.