Just a day after President Joe Biden announced he would not run for re-election, Democrats raised an impressive $100 million from donors through their primary fundraising platform, ActBlue. This amount was recorded over a span of just two days, as reported by Ryan Murphy, a developer at The Marshall Project, who tracks donations through ActBlue’s extensive record-keeping.
On Sunday alone, contributions reached $66.9 million, coinciding with the launch of Vice President Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign, marking the highest single-day fundraising total for the 2024 election cycle for ActBlue. The previous record was set on September 30, 2020, during the first presidential debate between Biden and Trump.
With this recent surge, ActBlue surpassed $14 billion in total funds raised since its inception two decades ago. In comparison, WinRed, the Republican equivalent established in late 2019, has garnered around $4.3 billion since it started collecting donations.
ActBlue highlighted the enthusiasm of new donors on social media, noting a significant number of people mentioned it was their first time contributing financially. “It’s so motivating to see new small-dollar donors join the grassroots movement!” the organization stated.
Additionally, Future Forward, a super PAC aligned with Biden, raised $150 million in new commitments from major donors within 24 hours of his announcement and the endorsement of Harris. Another group, Swing Left, reported raising over $160,000 in the same timeframe.
Evercore founder Roger Altman expressed confidence in Harris’s campaign, stating it would be “very well financed” and indicated his support. Prominent Democratic figures, including mega-donors George and Alex Soros, have also shown their backing for Harris.
Historically, Biden’s most successful fundraising days occurred in the aftermath of significant political events, such as his debate loss to Trump on June 27, when Biden and his campaign committees raised about $28 million. In the wake of Trump’s conviction on 34 felony counts, Biden raised $19.2 million, while Trump and his associated groups saw a substantial influx of $69 million in just two days following his conviction on May 30.
Between April and June, groups supporting Biden brought in $332.4 million, while those backing Trump raised $431.2 million. By the end of June, Biden had $281 million in cash, compared to Trump’s $336.2 million.