WASHINGTON — (CNN) Carly Fiorina’s success in the opening Republican debates helped her raise $6.8 million this past summer, her campaign said Tuesday.

The businesswoman’s fundraising total is likely to place her squarely in the middle of the Republican field.

Fiorina outraised some candidates originally seen as more established contenders, like sitting senators Marco Rubio, who raised $6 million, and Rand Paul, who collected $2.5 million, according to numbers released by their campaigns.

Fiorina did not rise to a top contender until after the second Republican debate, which came late in the fundraising quarter. She raised only $1.7 million in the previous quarter.

Spokeswoman Sarah Isgur Flores said on Twitter that Fiorina had $5.5 million on hand after the third quarter — likely less than many of her Republican counterparts. (Full numbers will not be available until the candidates file their third quarter reports with the Federal Election Commission Thursday.)

But the campaign said it only spent $2.2 million during July, August and September.

She has been highly dependent on a super PAC that is effectively running her ground game in early-voting states, which means the campaign does not need to hire field organizers.

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