Just a day after President Joe Biden announced he would not be seeking re-election, Democrats successfully raised $100 million through their primary fundraising platform.
ActBlue, a political action committee and fundraising platform dedicated to Democratic initiatives, reported this amount over the course of two days, according to a live tracker maintained by Ryan Murphy of The Marshall Project. Although this figure is unofficial, as it relies on ActBlue’s own records since its inception in 2004, it offers insights into the organization’s fundraising performance ahead of upcoming mandatory disclosures.
On Sunday alone, contributions reached $66.9 million in support of Vice President Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign, marking the highest single-day fundraising total for the 2024 election cycle on ActBlue. The previous record was established on September 30, 2020, during the first presidential debate between Biden and Trump, as indicated by Murphy’s tracker.
With the substantial donations received on Sunday, ActBlue achieved a significant milestone, surpassing $14 billion in total funds raised since its establishment two decades ago. In contrast, WinRed, the Republican fundraising equivalent that launched in late 2019, has garnered approximately $4.3 billion in donations to date.
ActBlue expressed enthusiasm for the surge in donations, stating on social media, “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, secured $150 million in new commitments from major donors within 24 hours following Biden’s announcement and his endorsement of Harris. Swing Left, which supports the eventual Democratic nominee, reported raising over $160,000 within the same 24-hour period.
Roger Altman, founder of Evercore, stated on Monday that he believes Harris’s campaign will be “very well financed” and has pledged his support to her. Prominent Democratic donors George and Alex Soros have also shown their backing for Harris.
Historically, Biden’s most successful fundraising days have occurred in response to major political events, such as after losing a televised debate with Trump on June 27, during which he raised approximately $28 million. Following Trump’s conviction on 34 felony charges, Biden raised $19.2 million, while Trump and his aligned organizations raised $69 million in the days immediately after his conviction.
Between April and June, pro-Biden groups raised $332.4 million, and pro-Trump groups brought in $431.2 million, according to The Financial Times. By the end of June, Biden had $281 million available compared to Trump’s $336.2 million.