Q1 Fundraising: PCs crush rivals, Liberals lag

And anti-lobby group gets its day in court

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First in Observer — FUNDRAISING WATCH — The big blue Tory fundraising machine has once again trounced its political opponents.

So far this year, the ruling Ford PCs have raked in a whopping $1.2 million — blowing the opposition parties out of the water.

By the numbers: According to real-time disclosures posted to Elections Ontario, the PCs pulled in $1,224,680 in the first quarter of the year, which wrapped up this week. The average donation was $745 from 1,643 donors.

Why it matters: That’ll buy you loads of anti-BONNIE CROMBIE ads, and, their latest: a new TV spot doing damage control on the Greenbelt flip-flop. Campaigns cost money, and the more cash in a party’s bank, the more resources they’ll have to run advertising, tour Ontario’s 124 ridings, buy pizza for door-knockers and more.

While their coffers far outflank that of the NDP, Liberals and Greens, it’s peanuts compared to the more than $4.5 million the PCs pulled in in Q1 of last year — thanks to Premier DOUG F…