Following President Joe Biden’s decision to not run for re-election, the Democratic Party successfully raised $100 million in fundraising through its principal platform within just two days.
ActBlue, the political action committee that facilitates fundraising for Democratic organizations, reported this significant fundraising achievement through a live tracker created by Ryan Murphy from The Marshall Project. Although the exact amount is unofficial, it highlights the growing financial support for the party just weeks ahead of scheduled disclosure filings.
On Sunday alone, supporters contributed $66.9 million to support Vice President Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign, marking the most successful fundraising day in the current 2024 cycle for ActBlue. The previous high for donations occurred on September 30, 2020, the date of the first presidential debate between Biden and Trump, as indicated by Murphy’s tracker.
The recent surge in donations enabled ActBlue to reach a milestone of $14 billion raised since its inception 20 years ago. In comparison, WinRed, the Republican fundraising platform that started in late 2019, has raised approximately $4.3 billion to date.
ActBlue shared their excitement on social media, stating, “We’ve seen so many folks saying they made their first ever donation in the last 24 hours! It’s so motivating to see new small-dollar donors join the grassroots movement!”
Additionally, Future Forward, a super PAC aligned with Biden, received $150 million in new commitments from significant donors following Biden’s announcement and endorsement of Harris. Swing Left, which established a fund to support the Democratic nominee, reported raising over $160,000 within the same timeframe.
Roger Altman, founder of Evercore, expressed on Monday his confidence that Harris’s campaign will be “very well financed” and has pledged his backing. Notably, Democratic major benefactors George and Alex Soros have also shown their support for Harris.
Historically, Biden’s previous high fundraising days occurred right after he faced a significant debate loss to Trump on June 27, where he and his committees raised about $28 million within a day. He also raised $19.2 million in the days following Trump’s indictment on multiple felony counts. Following Trump’s conviction, he and associated groups amassed $69 million within two days, temporarily overwhelming his campaign website. The super PAC, Make America Great Again Inc., raised $70 million that same month.
From April to June, pro-Biden organizations collected $332.4 million, while pro-Trump groups garnered $431.2 million. By the end of June, Biden had $281 million in funds available compared to Trump’s $336.2 million.