Grassroots fundraising
Encyclopedia
Grassroots fundraising is a method of fundraising
used by or for political candidates, which has grown in popularity with the emergence of the Internet
and its use by US presidential candidates like Howard Dean
and Ron Paul
. Grassroots fundraising is a way of financing their campaigns
for candidates who don't have significant media exposure, or who are in opposition to the powerful lobby groups. It often involves mobilizing grassroots support to meet a specific fundraising goal or sets a specific day for grassroots supporters to donate to the campaign.
for George W. Bush
's re-election. In response, Dean challenged his supporters to come to their computers with him "for lunch". Dean was able to match the amount raised by Cheney's fundraiser. He remarked, on his use of the Internet to raise funds for his campaign, "The Internet isn't magic, it's just a tool that can be used to do things differently."
, Obama
's presidential campaign received the most grassroots fundraising of presidential candidates in the first Quarter 2007 based on contributions under $200 with $5.77 million, more than double the nearest candidate, John McCain, who got $2.54 million. Out of Obama's quarter fundraising total, 22% came from contributions under $200 with McCain again second at 19%. However, candidates outside the top tier received larger portions of their funds in contributions under $200 with Tancredo at 78%, Brownback 61%, Paul 39% and Kucinich at 68%.
In the 2008 Republican primaries
, presidential candidate Ron Paul
has made significant use of the Internet to organize grassroots fundraising efforts. His campaign
is unique in seeing many grassroots fundraising events begin completely independent of the campaign. The most notable of these was the November 5, 2007 "moneybomb
", spread virally through forums like YouTube
and Myspace
. It managed to earn Paul $4.2 million in one day, breaking the online fundraising record as well as raising more than any other Republican candidate in the election. Ed Rollins
, the manager of Ross Perot's 1992 presidential campaign, said of Paul's grassroots support, "What he's done what his supporters have done is astonishing. You can't dismiss his anti-war vote. You can't dismiss the power of one man standing up with a powerful message. I'll tell you, I've been in politics for 40 years, and these days everything I've learned about politics is totally irrelevant because there's this uncontrollable thing like the Internet. Washington insiders don't know what to make of it."
Fundraising
Fundraising or fund raising is the process of soliciting and gathering voluntary contributions as money or other resources, by requesting donations from individuals, businesses, charitable foundations, or governmental agencies...
used by or for political candidates, which has grown in popularity with the emergence of 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...
and its use by US presidential candidates like Howard Dean
Howard Dean
Howard Brush Dean III is an American politician and physician from Vermont. He served six terms as the 79th Governor of Vermont and ran unsuccessfully for the 2004 Democratic presidential nomination. He was chairman of the Democratic National Committee from 2005 to 2009. Although his U.S...
and Ron Paul
Ron Paul
Ronald Ernest "Ron" Paul is an American physician, author and United States Congressman who is seeking to be the Republican Party candidate in the 2012 presidential election. Paul represents Texas's 14th congressional district, which covers an area south and southwest of Houston that includes...
. Grassroots fundraising is a way of financing their campaigns
Campaign finance
Campaign finance refers to all funds that are raised and spent in order to promote candidates, parties or policies in some sort of electoral contest. In modern democracies such funds are not necessarily devoted to election campaigns. Issue campaigns in referendums, party activities and party...
for candidates who don't have significant media exposure, or who are in opposition to the powerful lobby groups. It often involves mobilizing grassroots support to meet a specific fundraising goal or sets a specific day for grassroots supporters to donate to the campaign.
History in the United States
In the 2000 elections, 66.1% of campaign contributions of $200 or less came from American households earning less than $100,000, who make 86.6% of the general population, but only 14.3% of the contributions over $200 come from these households.2004 Democratic presidential primaries
In 2004, presidential candidate Howard Dean built up his campaign around grassroots fundraising. In an interview with Jeff Howe, Dean described a $2,000-per-plate fundraising lunch organized by Vice President Dick CheneyDick Cheney
Richard Bruce "Dick" Cheney served as the 46th Vice President of the United States , under George W. Bush....
for George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
's re-election. In response, Dean challenged his supporters to come to their computers with him "for lunch". Dean was able to match the amount raised by Cheney's fundraiser. He remarked, on his use of the Internet to raise funds for his campaign, "The Internet isn't magic, it's just a tool that can be used to do things differently."
2008 presidential primaries
According to Spencer A. Overton, a professor at George Washington UniversityGeorge Washington University
The George Washington University is a private, coeducational comprehensive university located in Washington, D.C. in the United States...
, Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
's presidential campaign received the most grassroots fundraising of presidential candidates in the first Quarter 2007 based on contributions under $200 with $5.77 million, more than double the nearest candidate, John McCain, who got $2.54 million. Out of Obama's quarter fundraising total, 22% came from contributions under $200 with McCain again second at 19%. However, candidates outside the top tier received larger portions of their funds in contributions under $200 with Tancredo at 78%, Brownback 61%, Paul 39% and Kucinich at 68%.
In the 2008 Republican primaries
Republican Party (United States) presidential primaries, 2008
The 2008 Republican presidential primaries were the selection process by which voters of the Republican Party chose its nominee for President of the United States in the 2008 U.S. presidential election...
, presidential candidate Ron Paul
Ron Paul
Ronald Ernest "Ron" Paul is an American physician, author and United States Congressman who is seeking to be the Republican Party candidate in the 2012 presidential election. Paul represents Texas's 14th congressional district, which covers an area south and southwest of Houston that includes...
has made significant use of the Internet to organize grassroots fundraising efforts. His campaign
Ron Paul presidential campaign, 2008
Ron Paul was a Republican Party primary candidate in the 2008 United States presidential election.Initial opinion polls during the first three quarters of 2007 showed Ron Paul consistently receiving support from 3% or less of those polled...
is unique in seeing many grassroots fundraising events begin completely independent of the campaign. The most notable of these was the November 5, 2007 "moneybomb
Moneybomb
Moneybomb is a neologism coined in 2007 to describe a grassroots fundraising effort over a brief fixed time period, usually to support a candidate for election by dramatically increasing, concentrating, and publicizing fundraising activity during a specific hour or day...
", spread virally through forums like YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
and Myspace
Myspace
Myspace is a social networking service owned by Specific Media LLC and pop star Justin Timberlake. Myspace launched in August 2003 and is headquartered in Beverly Hills, California. In August 2011, Myspace had 33.1 million unique U.S. visitors....
. It managed to earn Paul $4.2 million in one day, breaking the online fundraising record as well as raising more than any other Republican candidate in the election. Ed Rollins
Ed Rollins
Edward John "Ed" Rollins is a Republican campaign consultant and advisor who has worked on several high-profile political campaigns in the United States. In 1983-84, he was National Campaign Director for the Reagan-Bush '84 campaign, winning 49 of 50 states...
, the manager of Ross Perot's 1992 presidential campaign, said of Paul's grassroots support, "What he's done what his supporters have done is astonishing. You can't dismiss his anti-war vote. You can't dismiss the power of one man standing up with a powerful message. I'll tell you, I've been in politics for 40 years, and these days everything I've learned about politics is totally irrelevant because there's this uncontrollable thing like the Internet. Washington insiders don't know what to make of it."
See also
- Political financePolitical financePolitical finance covers all funds that are raised and spent for political purposes. Necessarily such purposes include all political contests for voting by citizens, especially the election campaigns for various public offices that are run by parties and candidates. Moreover all modern democracies...
- Campaign financeCampaign financeCampaign finance refers to all funds that are raised and spent in order to promote candidates, parties or policies in some sort of electoral contest. In modern democracies such funds are not necessarily devoted to election campaigns. Issue campaigns in referendums, party activities and party...
- Political donations in AustraliaPolitical donations in AustraliaThe term political donations refers to gifts to a politician, a political party, or an election campaign.In Australia, the majority of political donations come in the form of financial gifts from corporations, which go towards the funding of the parties' election advertising campaigns. Donations...
- Federal political financing in CanadaFederal political financing in CanadaThe fair and transparent financing of political parties, candidates, and election campaigns is a key determinant in the health and proper functioning of a democracy...
- Party finance in GermanyParty finance in GermanyParty finance in Germany became an issue of political discourse, when in 1949 the concept of transparency was discussed in the constitional convention in connection with a new article to be entered into the constitution...
- Political funding in JapanPolitical funding in JapanIn Japan, the problem of political funding was intensely debated during the late 1980s and early 1990s, partly as a result of revelations following the Recruit scandal of 1988-89...
- Political funding in the United KingdomPolitical funding in the United KingdomPolitical funding in the United Kingdom has been a source of controversy for many years. There are three main ways a political party is funded. The first is through membership subs; the second is through donations; the third is through state funding.-History:...
- Campaign finance in the United StatesCampaign finance in the United StatesCampaign finance in the United States is the financing of electoral campaigns at the federal, state, and local levels.At the federal level, the primary source of campaign funds is individuals; political action committees are a distant second. Contributions from both are limited, and direct...