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September 21, 2003
End of 3rd Quarter
The Dean campaign has brought back the bat. In the first four hours, $36,506.71 was raised with 525 contributions. Average contribution: $69.54.
Kerry's had his competing "hammer" up for 3-4 days, and has raised about $80,000.
The folks here at StudioGlyphic talk a lot about the amount of money that's being raised, and I'm sure our readers get a little sick of it. But we also point out the number of contributions and the average contribution because we think it's important. Most political campaigns raise money by holding special luncheons or dinners with donors who can contribute $2000 or $1000 a head. Bush has his Rangers and Pioneers--mostly wealthy people who tap their wealthy friends to contribute the maximum amount of $2000.
The Dean campaign is different. These are ordinary people taking money out of their wallets to give to a cause they believe in. They believe in the message, or they think he's the one who can take on BushCo, or both. This is not empty rhetoric. Take a look yourself:
The Center for Responsive Politics broke down the annual fundraising amounts (as of 2nd quarter) to show which candidates were getting the big bucks. Here are the top four fundraisers:
Bush, George W - 12,297 (76%)
Edwards, John - 3,825 (67%)
Kerry, John - 3,480 (56%)
Dean, Howard - 798 (16%)
The first number is the number of contributors who contributed $2000+. The second number is the percentage of the funds raised that these contributions represent. Three-quarters, two-thirds, and a little over half of the money Dean's competitors have raised comes from these $2,000+ contributions. Only one-sixth of the money Dean's raised is in the form of $2,000+ contributions.
Insofar as fundraising represents viability as well as the means to reach voters via advertising and on-the-ground campaigning, we interpret these numbers as a sign of Dean's grassroots appeal. There's another side to this as well. With 84% of the money coming from contributions under $2,000, there's room to tap into this donor pool again and again.
Posted by glyphic at September 21, 2003 03:49 AM