More small-dollar donors than ever before are powering grassroots movements, and their immense energy for changing our country was on full display this past quarter. 2.4 million engaged grassroots supporters gave an incredible $246 million in Q2 ‘19 through ActBlue, with 56% of contributions made on mobile devices. In the first two quarters of this cycle, 3.3 million unique donors gave more than $420 million to nearly 9,000 campaigns and organizations, with an average contribution size of $32.29. These numbers are even more impressive considering that 4.9 million donors gave on ActBlue over the course of the entire 2018 election cycle!
Donors are all in to transform our country: 40% of donors have given more than once so far this year, and 1.1 million people have created ActBlue Express accounts so they can easily give to any group on ActBlue with a single click. And of donors who have given to both a presidential candidate and another type of candidate or group, 56% gave their first contribution of the year to a non-presidential candidate or organization and then went on to give to a presidential candidate. Many donors are showing up first for causes, congressional campaigns, or other down-ballot races, and then getting involved with the presidential race.
Keep reading to see all of what small-dollar donors achieved this quarter!
Cycle-to-Cycle Comparison
| 2016 Cycle through Q2 2015 | 2018 Cycle through Q2 2017 | 2020 Cycle through Q2 2019 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contributions | 2,073,889 | 8,827,452 | 13,024,448 |
| Total Amount | $75,815,141 | $248,806,668 | $420,495,119 |
| Average Contribution Size | $36.56 | $28.19 | $32.29 |
| Unique Campaigns, Committees and Organizations | 2,396 | 4,858 | 8,674 |
Topline Numbers
| Q2 ’15 | Q2 ’17 | Q2 ’19 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contributions | 1,281,954 | 4,655,506 | 7,620,071 |
| Total Amount | $48,572,278 | $137,442,494 | $245,989,080 |
| Average Contribution Size | $37.89 | $29.52 | $32.28 |
| Unique Campaigns, Committees and Organizations | 1,976 | 4,293 | 7,582 |
Building off the unprecedented participation of the 2018 midterms, small-dollar donors have expanded this grassroots movement in incredible ways, breaking multiple records on June 30th. By midnight, small-dollar donors made the largest number of contributions in a single day (390,000 contributions) and raised the second largest haul of money ever in a day ($12.5 million).
Creating a stronger democracy means winning elections at all levels of our government. We’re investing heavily in reaching out to state and local campaigns and making sure we’re ready to help thousands of state-level campaigns win. So far this year, we’ve worked with 5,744 different state and local campaigns and organizations, more than double the number we had worked with at the same point in 2017.
And donors are fired up about down-ballot races, too. They’ve supported state legislative candidates with unparalleled energy, raising twice as much money in the first two quarters of 2019 compared to Q1 and Q2 ‘17 to win back and protect crucial seats that will determine our voting maps for the next decade. At the local level, donors gave more than three times as much money to local candidates and groups so far this cycle compared to this point in the 2018 cycle.
Folks are also donating as a way to make a difference during one of our country’s biggest humanitarian disasters: Small-dollar donors raised $1.3 million in Q2 for groups helping parents and children separated at the border. Elected officials and activists used our Tandem Fundraising feature to create contribution forms listing multiple nonprofits on the ground so people looking to help immigrant and refugee families could support all of their work with one donate button.
ActBlue Express
| Q2 ’15 | Q2 ’17 | Q2 ’19 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| New ActBlue Express Users | 196,873 | 241,619 | 588,933 |
| % of Total Volume via ActBlue Express | 57.2% | 59.2% | 60.0% |
| % of Total Contributions via ActBlue Express | 64.0% | 65.9% | 64.2% |
There’s no ceiling that we’ve seen for small-dollar donor participation: 589K new folks signed up for ActBlue Express’ single-click giving in Q2 ‘19 alone. There are now 7 million small-dollar donors (and counting) in our ActBlue Express universe ready to transform our country and instantly take action for the left when it matters most.
Mobile
| Q2 ’15 | Q2 ’17 | Q2 ’19 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| % of Contributions via Mobile | 27.0% | 40.5% | 55.7% |
We’re constantly enhancing our tools to better serve growing grassroots movements and the donors driving them. This is our second quarter ever with more than 50% of contributions made via mobile devices! We know the importance of mobile in giving all people access to effecting change. It’s why our team of engineers has prioritized providing the same single-click ease of giving for donors using alternate forms of payment like Apple Pay® and PayPal™ on tablets or phones.
Our mission is to meet small-dollar donors where they’re at so they can make their voices heard on any device they have, anywhere, and at any time of day. It’s why we keep mobile at the forefront of our technological innovation and work hard to streamline mobile contribution forms. You can see just how many people are taking advantage of our optimized mobile forms to participate throughout the day below:
Recurring Contributions
| Q2 ’15 | Q2 ’17 | Q2 ’19 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total Recurring Volume | $9,922,468 | $36,630,129 | $40,515,111 |
| % of Total Volume | 20.4% | 26.7% | 16.5% |
Customer Service
| Q2 ’19 | |
|---|---|
| Total Incoming Calls | 23,587 |
| Email Conversations | 78,127 |
More small-dollar donors than ever are investing early in the 2020 cycle and showing up to power the left in this historic moment. Interested in being part of these people-powered movements? If you want help fundraising for your favorite candidate or cause, or if you have questions about this post, drop us a line at info@actblue.com. If you’re looking to get your group set up on ActBlue, you can always contact us at support@actblue.com. And if you’re interested in putting your skills to work and changing our country, we’re looking for passionate people to join our team!
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