Q4 2023: Steady Fundraising Drives Change at Every Level

Steady Giving. In the final quarter before election year, small-dollar donors continued their steady giving, fueling the candidates and organizations that matter most to them. This quarter, 1.9 million unique donors gave 8.6 million contributions to 15,754 Democratic campaigns and progressive organizations, totaling more than $353 million. This is an increase in total dollars given, compared to this same period in the last presidential election cycle, which included a highly competitive Democratic presidential primary.

Protecting our Rights and Democracy. This quarter, House and Senate races saw an increase in fundraising. Driven by the rampant dysfunction in the GOP-led House that left the chamber without a Speaker for three weeks, small-dollar donors focused their giving on House races that will be crucial to flipping the chamber this November. House races had a 24.7% increase in total dollars raised compared to Q4 2019, and Senate races had an impressive boost with a 32.3% increase in dollars raised and a 24.8% increase in the number of donors compared to Q4 2019. Small-dollar donors know that we need leaders in Congress who will focus on improving people’s quality of life rather than obstruction, and who will defend our democracy and personal freedom.

Victory at the Statehouse. This quarter, small-dollar donors played a key role in Democratic victories in November and demonstrated how powerful they are at the state and local levels. In Virginia, Democrats took full control of the statehouse, and in Kentucky, an energized base re-elected Gov. Andy Beshear to his second term. Local races had a 52.2% increase in dollars raised, a 36.4% increase in contributions, and a 33.8% increase in unique donors compared to Q4 2019. This quarter, gubernatorial contributions increased by 48.6% compared to 2019. Additionally, the number of unique gubernatorial donors grew 47.1% compared to Q4 2019. These state and local victories supported by small-dollar donors in this quarter help lay the foundation for the grassroots community to make an impact in 2024.

AB Advantage. This quarter, 56.2% of small-dollar donors returned to ActBlue to give multiple times, with an average of over four contributions to at least three campaigns. The share of contributions made with a saved payment method or digital wallet option also increased by 7.3 percentage points, and the share of contributions made via a mobile device increased 7.9 percentage points compared to the same quarter in 2019. This underscores the advantage ActBlue offers to small-dollar donors who want to quickly and easily support Democratic campaigns and progressive causes.

A closer look. Our platform remains instrumental in driving change. Read on to learn more about the fundraising trends across ActBlue in the Q4 2023 cycle and how small-dollar donors continue to show up for candidates and organizations.

TOPLINE NUMBERS

Congressional Races

We saw a steady rise in fundraising for congressional races.

• This quarter, House races increased their number of donors and candidates by 17.8% and 9.1%, respectively, compared to Q4 2021.
• Q4 2023 Senate races had a 43.6% increase in contributions compared to Q4 2019.

In the States

In the states, there was a notable increase in contributions for legislative campaigns on our platform.

• In Q4 2023, state legislative races increased their dollars raised by 32.7% compared to Q4 2019.
• Q4 2023 state legislative races had 465 additional campaigns, committees, and organizations fundraising compared to Q4 2021, marking a 16.7% increase.

ACTBLUE ADVANTAGE

Mobile giving and technology advantages are crucial to Democratic success. ActBlue makes taking action easy. This quarter we’ve seen: