Big Moments. Small-dollar donors are giving steadily to Democratic candidates and causes and rallying around big moments in the first quarter of 2024. More than 2.4 million unique donors gave 10.8 million contributions to 15,927 campaigns and organizations, totaling more than $460 million with an average contribution size of $42.73. Small-dollar donors are giving during pivotal moments, especially those that contrast President Biden’s vision for the country against that of the MAGA Republican agenda, with 86.3% of all donors giving at least one federal donation. President Biden’s State of the Union address brought in the most first-time donors this quarter. With over 55% of first-quarter donors giving multiple contributions, the grassroots donor community is enthusiastically supporting Democratic and progressive candidates, causes, and organizations.
Taking Back the House & Holding the Senate. With Congressional Republicans working to gut freedoms, ban abortion, and advance the MAGA agenda, small-dollar donors are focused on taking back the House and holding the Senate for Democrats. In the first quarter of 2024, House and Senate races raised over $151 million, and saw an increased total number of contributions and total dollars raised by 12.7% and 18.7%, respectively, compared to the first quarter of 2020. Grassroots donors are showing up for competitive Democratic and progressive House and Senate campaigns and organizations. They know how important these electoral victories will be in protecting freedom and restoring the federal right to abortion — as Republicans continue to restrict and ban abortion in the states — as well as advancing much-needed progress on gun safety and climate issues at the federal level.
Change on the Ground. State legislative and local races saw a significant increase in fundraising this quarter, compared to four years ago. As Republican state lawmakers escalate their attacks on reproductive freedom and family planning, including the Alabama Supreme Court ruling that banned IVF, small-dollar donors are fervently giving to campaigns and causes that are advancing change in their communities and standing as a bulwark against the MAGA Republican agenda. State legislative candidates increased their number of contributions and total dollars raised by 20.8% and 48.9%, respectively, compared to the first quarter of 2020. Programs like the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee’s (DLCC) “down ballot defenders” are helping to recruit record numbers of monthly donors who want to push back against Republican efforts to erode access to abortion, as well as other issues like banning books, anti-LGBTQ laws, and attempts to restrict access to the ballot box. Small-dollar donors are driving change at the state, local, and nonprofit levels with 25.9% of donors giving at least one contribution to these levels this quarter.
Accessibility & Innovation. The accessibility & innovation of ActBlue is critical to grassroots fundraising in 2024 and central to driving change cycle-to-cycle. Nearly 5,000 additional unique campaigns, committees, and organizations are using ActBlue compared to four years ago. Since launching in January 2024, QR codes have raised nearly $1.5 million this quarter. QR codes simplify the donation process and make it easy for small-dollar donors to securely and quickly give from their mobile devices, anywhere, anytime. In Q1 2024, 66.9% of all contributions were made via mobile devices, which is an increase of 5.4 percentage points from Q1 2020, and 69.3% of all contributions were made with a saved payment method or a digital wallet option, an increase of 4.5 percentage points compared to Q1 2020. Read on to learn more about Q1 2024 trends.
TOPLINE NUMBERS
| Q1 2020 | Q1 2024 | |
|---|---|---|
| Contributions | 17,553,538 | 10,781,709 |
| Total Amount | $533,225,092 | $460,697,830 |
| Average Contribution Size | $30.38 | $42.73 |
| Unique Donors | 4,341,805 | 2,401,945 |
| Unique Campaigns, Committees, and Organizations | 10,954 | 15,927 |
2019 Context
- Q1 2020 was a busy time during the crowded Democratic presidential primary election, which led to incredible small-dollar donor engagement. At the beginning of Q1, there were 15 active candidates, most engaged in small-dollar donor fundraising.
- Q1 also included five primary debates, including the two debates with the highest number of viewers. Several of the Q1 2020 debates had a donor number threshold, which led to the campaigns prioritizing small-dollar donor outreach to make it on stage.
Congressional Races
Small-dollar donors continue to support competitive congressional races.
- Q1 2024 Senate and House races increased their total contributions and dollars raised by 12.7% and 18.7%, respectively, compared to Q1 2020.
- Q1 2024 Senate races had a 19.9% increase compared to Q1 2020.
- Q1 2024 House races had a 28.6% increase in dollars raised compared to Q1 2020.
In the States
In the states, we saw a steady increase in fundraising for legislative and local campaigns.
- In Q1 2024, state legislative races increased their number of contributions and total dollars raised by 20.8% and 48.9%, respectively compared to Q1 2020.
- Q1 2024 state legislative races had 535 additional campaigns, committees, and organizations fundraising compared to Q1 2020, marking a 15.2% increase.
- Local races in Q1 2024 had a 49.8% increase in dollars raised, a 33.1% increase in contributions, and a 30.3% increase in unique donors compared to Q1 2020.
- Q1 2024 had 1,152 additional local campaigns, committees, and organizations fundraising compared to Q1 2020, marking a 37.8% increase.
ACTBLUE ADVANTAGE
Mobile giving and easy-to-use technology are critical to Democratic and progressive campaigns and organizations. This quarter, the share of contributions made via a mobile device or a saved wallet option increased, as did the percentage of total volume of recurring contributions. In January 2024, ActBlue launched QR codes, resulting in nearly $1.5 million in total dollars raised through this new method since its adoption. This quarter we’ve seen:
- The share of contributions made with a saved payment method or digital wallet option increased by 4.5 percentage points and the share of contributions made via a mobile device increased by 5.4 percentage points, relative to Q1 2020.
- The percentage of total recurring contribution volume increased from Q1 2020 by 1.4 percentage points in Q1 2024.
- QR code adoption has raised nearly 1.5 million during the quarter since it launched in January 2024.
Payment Methods
| Q1 2020 | Q1 2024 | |
|---|---|---|
| % of Contributions made with a Saved Payment Method or Digital Wallet Option | 64.8% | 69.3% |
| % of Contributions made via a Mobile Device | 61.5% | 66.9% |
Recurring
| Q1 2020 | Q1 2024 | |
|---|---|---|
| Total Recurring Volume | $67,716,451 | $65,151,101 |
| % of Total Volume | 12.7% | 14.1% |
