It's hard to know if it's just Republicans' terribly sub-par candidates or the foul smell wafting off the GOP more generally, but whatever the reason, the party's online fundraising has hit a wall, according to the New York Times.
While donations typically ramp up as the election draws nearer, exactly the opposition has happened. A Times analysis of the GOP grassroots fundraising platform WinRed found a 12% decrease from first to second quarter in the total amount donated to all federal Republican campaigns. But the slowdown has also affected the major GOP campaign committees along with Donald Trump's political operation.
Making matters even worse, the Democrats' online donations through Act Blue jumped more than 21% in the second quarter, an increase that nearly doubled the GOP's downturn.
In case you're wondering what that looks like, it looks like this.
In the last three quarters (including the in final quarter of 2021), Democratic online fundraising outpaced GOP fundraising by $100 million.
The sudden slowdown and widening gap, has sent Republicans into a frenzy trying to figure out what's going on. The fact that Trump is their biggest fundraising draw just doubles their pain because none of the money he takes in goes toward the GOP's candidates. In fact, one of the few candidates Trump tried to help to the tune of some $500,000, former Sen. David Perdue of Georgia, got clobbered in his gubernatorial bid against Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp.
It’s worth noting that high-dollar donors are still lining the coffers of Republican PACs. For instance, the GOP PAC Congressional Leadership Fund ended June with $130 million cash on hand, while the Democratic House Majority PAC had just $60 million on hand.
But the lack of grassroots enthusiasm is a serious problem and both Republicans and their candidates.
Trump and his followers proved on Jan. 6 how dangerously close they came to overturning our democracy. Help cancel Republican voter suppression with the power of your pen by clicking here and signing up to volunteer with Vote Forward, writing personalized letters to targeted voters urging them to exercise their right to vote this year.
