Democrats responded to President Biden’s withdrawal from the presidential race with a surge of donations, amassing over $50 million online on Sunday. This unprecedented contribution day marks the largest since the 2020 election, according to a New York Times analysis of ActBlue, the primary platform for processing Democratic donations.
Additionally, Kenneth Pennington, a Democratic digital strategist, posted on X (formerly Twitter), “Democrats have raised $63 million today on ActBlue. Looks on path to exceed $90 million by the 24-hour mark from Joe Biden's decision.”
Following Biden's departure and Vice President Kamala Harris gaining momentum to secure the nomination, Democratic supporters increased their online donations at an extraordinary rate. Contributions soared from an average of less than $200,000 per hour before Biden's announcement to nearly $11.5 million in a single hour later that day, the report said.
By 10 p.m., the report added that Sunday had become the third biggest day for online donations in ActBlue’s history.
The ActBlue ticker reflects all donations made on the platform, encompassing contributions to nearly every Democratic House and Senate candidate as well as various politically active nonprofits.
“This might be the greatest fundraising moment in Democratic Party history,” commented Pennington, the Democratic digital strategist, on X.
The previous record for single-day donations on ActBlue was set the day after Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death in September 2020, with ActBlue processing approximately $73.5 million and before this Sunday, only one other day had seen donations surpass $50 million, as per the New York Times report.
Livemint could not independently verify this development.
This recent surge in donations is significant for the Democratic Party as it attempts to recover from a period of political discord and stagnant momentum in the race against former President Donald J. Trump. Fundraising had notably declined among major Democratic donors following Biden’s lacklustre debate performance.
