ActBlue
Encyclopedia
ActBlue is a United States
political committee established in June 2004 that enables anyone to fundraise on the Internet
for the Democratic Party
candidates of their choice.
ActBlue has grown quickly to become a major fundraising tool for Democrats, particularly favored by the netroots
and left-leaning blog
gers. As of December 2010, ActBlue had raised more than $170 million USD for Democratic candidates at various levels of politics, making it the largest single source of funds for Democrats. The organization is open to all registered Democratic campaigns and candidates, and it does not take a cut.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
political committee established in June 2004 that enables anyone to fundraise on the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
for the Democratic Party
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
candidates of their choice.
ActBlue has grown quickly to become a major fundraising tool for Democrats, particularly favored by the netroots
Netroots
Netroots is a term coined in 2002 by Jerome Armstrong to describe political activism organized through blogs and other online media, including wikis and social network services. The word is a portmanteau of Internet and grassroots, reflecting the technological innovations that set netroots...
and left-leaning blog
Blog
A blog is a type of website or part of a website supposed to be updated with new content from time to time. Blogs are usually maintained by an individual with regular entries of commentary, descriptions of events, or other material such as graphics or video. Entries are commonly displayed in...
gers. As of December 2010, ActBlue had raised more than $170 million USD for Democratic candidates at various levels of politics, making it the largest single source of funds for Democrats. The organization is open to all registered Democratic campaigns and candidates, and it does not take a cut.
History
ActBlue was founded in 2004 by Benjamin Rahn, who left a doctoral program in theoretical physics at Caltech to develop the platform, and Matt DeBergalis, a computer science graduate of MIT.Timeline
- April Fools' Day 2008: ActBlue announces on its blog that it will begin collecting funds for US candidates in Euros, due to the decline of the dollar.
Press Coverage
- ActBlue's Record Take, The New York Times, Caucus Blog, 4/3/2008
- ActBlue Keeps the Money Coming, CQ Today Online News, 4/1/2008
- ActBlue Reports Raising $21 Million, The Washington Post, 3/14/2008
- ActBlue Featured in Laura Flanders' Blue Grit. New York: Penguin Books (2008), 165
- Maryland Congressional Candidate Donna Edwards On ActBlue, Matt Stoller, www.openleft.com, 2/16/2008
- Campaign Giving Online Challenges Influence of Major Communal Donors, Jewish Daily Forward, 2/13/2008
- A Fund-Raising Rainmaker Arises Online, The New York Times, 11/29/2007
- ActBlue Reshapes How Smaller Races Get Financed, The Wall Street Journal, 9/28/07
- ActBlue: Putting the “D” Back in Democracy, Huffington Post, 9/13/07
- Internet-Based PAC Driving Democratic Push: Small Donors Fuel Big Support Drive, The Boston Globe, 8/7/07
- The Open Party Committee, Open Left, 7/18/07
- Marketing Election '08: Q&A With Matt DeBergalis, ActBlue, Fast Company, 7/07
- The Caucus: Money Focus, The New York Times, 7/12/07
- Donations Pooled Online Are Getting Candidates' Attention, The Washington Post, 3/11/07
- http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/latimes/access/1230439201.html?dids=1230439201:1230439201&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=Mar+11%2C+2007&author=Dan+Morain&pub=Los+Angeles+Times&edition=&startpage=A.21&desc=THE+NATION%3B+Small+Democratic+donors+have+an+online+pal%3B+ActBlue+makes+giving+easy%2C+and+it%27s+become+a+major+political+player.+Republicans+have+caught+on+to+the+ideaActBlue Makes Giving Easy, and it's Become a Major Political Player], The Los Angeles Times, 3/11/07
- The New Rainmakers, National Journal, 10/27/06
- ActBlue Is Top PAC for Democrats, MyDD, 7/16/06
- the Speed of Blog, Salon.com, 7/23/04
- ActBlue Lets Anyone Be PAC Man, Wired, 9/28/04
- How to Pump Young Democrats’ Energy and Money into the Political Process, The Boston Phoenix, 6/28/04