Just a day after President Joe Biden announced he would not run for re-election, Democrats successfully raised $100 million through their primary fundraising platform.
ActBlue, a political action committee that facilitates donations for Democratic organizations, reported the significant sum over the past two days, according to a live tracker by Ryan Murphy of The Marshall Project. This figure is derived from ActBlue’s comprehensive donation tracker that has been in operation since 2004, serving as a preliminary indication of the group’s fundraising capabilities ahead of any formal reports.
On Sunday, a notable $66.9 million was dedicated to the launch of Vice President Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign, making it the most successful fundraising day in the 2024 electoral cycle for ActBlue. Comparatively, the second-highest donation day occurred on September 30, 2020, coinciding with the first presidential debate between Biden and Trump.
ActBlue’s impressive fundraising efforts allowed it to surpass $14 billion in total cash raised since its establishment two decades ago. In contrast, WinRed, the Republican fundraising counterpart initiated in late 2019, has collected approximately $4.3 billion according to OpenSecrets.
ActBlue highlighted the influx of new donors in a statement on social media, expressing excitement about many first-time contributors joining the grassroots movement.
Furthermore, Future Forward, a super PAC aligned with Biden, reportedly gathered $150 million in new commitments from major donors within 24 hours following Biden’s announcement and his endorsement of Harris. Additionally, the group Swing Left, which supports the eventual Democratic nominee, raised over $160,000 in the same time frame.
Roger Altman, founder of Evercore, indicated on Monday that Harris’s campaign would be “very well financed” as he pledged his support. Notably, prominent Democratic donors George and Alex Soros have also endorsed Harris.
Historically, Biden experienced his most successful fundraising days following significant public events, such as a televised debate loss to Trump and other notable political developments. For instance, after being defeated in a debate on June 27, Biden raised about $28 million within a day. Following Trump’s conviction on 34 felony counts, Biden raised $19.2 million shortly after, while Trump and his supporters raised $69 million during the same period, causing a temporary crash of Trump’s campaign website.
Overall, from April to June, pro-Biden groups accumulated $332.4 million, with pro-Trump groups raising slightly more at $431.2 million. By the end of June, Biden had $281 million in funds available compared to Trump’s $336.2 million.