Republican businessman Mike McFadden announced Tuesday that he has raised $700,000 in the first month of his campaign to unseat U.S. Sen. Al Franken.

McFadden, continuing the trend of Minnesota politicians breaking news via video, posted his announcement on YouTube.

"It's hard to believe that it's been more than a month since I filed the paperwork to run for U.S. Senate," McFadden says. "In one month, we've gained approximately 27,000 Facebook 'likes,' which my kids tell me is a good thing. I've also been humbled by the outpouring of financial support. In the first four weeks of this campaign, we've raised more than $700,000."

McFadden, an executive at the Lazard finance firm, launched his Senate campaign on May 29. He faces first-term Democratic incumbent Franken, who raised almost $2 million in the first three months of this year.

The next round of campaign finance reports, covering the months of April through June, will be released by the Federal Election Commission in mid-July. McFadden campaign spokesman Tom Erickson said that other than a combined $10,000 contribution from the candidate and his wife, the funds came from outside donations, not self-financing.