Editor's Note: Each week, ActBlue will release key statistics from campaigns across the country, along with brief biographical notes on the week's Top 10 Candidates and Committees.* When we have information that may help to explain why a candidate or candidate has had increased activity on ActBlue, we will provide it in italics below the biography. Descriptive content reproduced in the ActBlue Campaign Newswire is collated from publicly available sources. ActBlue does not take sides in any Democratic primary. You can subscribe to the RSS feed of the Campaign Newswire at http://campaignnewswire.blogspot.com.
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1. Kay Hagan | NC-Sen | $26,679.37
2. Rick Noriega | TX-Sen | $25,072.95
3. Campaign for Our Country | $24,851.83
4. Russ Warner | CA-26 | $14,773.41
5. Jewish Council for Education & Research | $14,175.00
6. Jon Powers | NY-26 | $12,420.19
7. Eric Massa | NY-29 | $12,094.99
8. Matthew 25 Network | $11,644.70
9. Mark Warner | VA-Sen | $11,515.44
10. Chris Bell | TX-SD-17 | $10,567.00
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1. Kay Hagan (NC-Sen)
Kay Hagan is a Campaign Newswire regular and is back in the number 1 spot for the third time in four weeks. Hagan is running against Republican incumbent Elizabeth Dole and was named one of the "top ten most effective state senators" by the North Carolina Center for Public Policy Research (NCCPPR). After winning the Democratic primary in May with 60 percent of the vote, the five-term North Carolina state senator continues to pick up high-profile endorsements.
Hagan's fundraising total this week reflects efforts by Virginia Senator Jim Webb's leadership PAC Born Fighting, and continued efforts by her campaign to connect with North Carolina voters. Born Fighting's new ActBlue page, Two Outstanding Women, lists Hagan and New Hampshire's Democratic Senate candidate Jeanne Shaheen and includes a message from Senator Webb, stating, "I want them by my side in Washington." A breakfast held yesterday with business leaders and Dr. Nido Qubein, President of High Point University in North Carolina, also helped boost Hagan into the number 1 seat this week.
Hagan's ActBlue hubpage: http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/18560
Hagan's campaign site: http://kayhagan.com/welcome
2. Rick Noriega (TX-Sen)
Noriega is certainly no newcomer to ActBlue success, and has appeared on every Top 10 List since ActBlue launched the Campaign Newswire in June 2008. After Noriega's Army tour in Afghanistan, the two-term Texas state representative and Lieutenant Colonel was appointed Incident Commander of Hurricane Katrina relief efforts in Houston, Texas. He's now running against Republican incumbent John Cornyn for the Texas Senate seat.
High-profile Democrats such as California Senator Barbara Boxer (http://actblue.com/page/boxer4noriega), Montana Senator Jon Tester (http://actblue.com/page/tester4noriega), Virginia Senator Jim Webb (http://actblue.com/page/webb4noriega), and General Wesley Clark (http://actblue.com/page/clark4noriega) continue to fundraise for Noriega on ActBlue. Through the campaign's "Fill Rick's Boots" effort, Noriega also continues to receive recurring small-dollar contributions, a traditional marker of sustainability in campaigns. Noriega is also prominently featured on a number of slate pages sponsored by major bloggers, including one created by the Blue America PAC, a group formed by the blogs Crooks & Liars, Firedoglake, Digby, and Down With Tyranny. Daily Kos, another prominent political blog, also actively fundraises for Noriega and others on its 'Orange to Blue' page. Noriega's fundraising total this week reflects ticket sales for a fundraiser in South Denton County, organized via ActBlue at http://actblue.com/page/denton.
Noriega's ActBlue hubpage: http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/18187
Noriega's campaign site: http://www.ricknoriega.com/
3. Campaign for Our Country
Campaign for Our Country is Senator John Kerry's leadership PAC that has raised over $15 million for candidates and committees up and down the ballot in 46 states. The group states that it will "defend Democrats who are smeared by the right-wing smear machine, and ... point out ways the Republicans have failed this country." Last week, the PAC launched TruthFightsBack.com, a new, innovative website that empowers activists to track and fight back against the rightwing smear machine. The overwhelming success of this launch drove the fundraising for the PAC last week into the number 3 slot.
The median contribution for Campaign for our Country last week was only $25--an impressively low amount that evidences the widespread support for the goals of Senator Kerry's leadership PAC during this election cycle.
Campaign for Our Country's ActBlue hubpage: http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/9487
Campaign for Our Country's website: http://www.campaignforourcountry.com/
4. Russ Warner (CA-26)
Russ Warner is a candidate for Congress in California's 26th Congressional District, which encompasses the San Gabriel Valley from La Crescenta to Rancho Cucamonga. Warner is a veteran of the magazine distribution trade, and is the father of three sons, one of whom recently returned from service in Iraq. Warner is running against Republican Congressman David Dreier.
Warner is a Blue America candidate, who has attracted continuous support on ActBlue since winning the Democratic Primary on June 6th. Over 15 California Congressmen and women have endorsed Warner, as well as General Wesley Clark, current California Lieutenant Governor John Garamendi, and numerous Labor Unions and Democratic organizations. After previous appearances in the Campaign Newswire, the efforts of his campaign to connect with Californians in the 26th District catapulted Warner into the top 5 candidates on our list for the first time.
Warner's ActBlue hubpage: http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/16419
Warner's campaign site: http://www.warnerforcongress.com/
5. Jewish Council for Education & Research
The JCER works to "develop and communicate information to voters in the United States around issues of concern to the Jewish community." By providing tools to its supporters such as phone and email banks, and developing a campaign to identify and persuade Jewish swing voters, JCER is hoping to mobilize support in the Jewish community "to deliver three out of four Jewish votes" to Barack Obama.
JCER brought in more contributions last week than any other week since creating an ActBlue hubpage at the end of July 2008.
JCER's ActBlue hubpage: http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/20799
JCER's website: http://www.actblue.com/page/jcer
6. Jon Powers (NY-26)
Jon Powers, running for Congress in New York's 26th District, is an Army Captain and decorated Iraqi War veteran, schoolteacher, and nonprofit leader. On returning from Baghdad and Najaf, Powers returned to New York planning to become a social studies teacher in the Clarence, NY public schools. But he felt compelled to return to Iraq, and founded War Kids Relief, a nonprofit youth services group in Baghdad that was recognized by NBC Nightly News. Hailed by his fellow troops as a "very passionate" and "exceptional leader," Powers has been endorsed by General Wesley Clark and Senator John Kerry, among other national leaders and local and national unions. Powers will face New York attorney Alice Kryzan and manufacturer Jack Davis in a September 9th primary.
Powers's fundraising success on ActBlue is driven by recurring contributions to his trademark 'Club 26,' named for his district, wherein members commit to contributing $26 each month through victory in November. Beyond giving, members participate in monthly conference calls to exchange ideas and hear about the campaign's progress.
Powers's ActBlue hubpage: http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/18111
Powers's campaign site: http://www.powersforcongress.com
7. Eric Massa (NY-29)
Naval veteran Eric Massa is a candidate for Congress from New York's 29th District. He is challenging Republican incumbent Randy Kuhl for the second time. Massa is a vocal supporter of the "Responsible Plan for Iraq." This is Massa's second cycle with ActBlue.
Massa raised more than $14,000 this week on ActBlue, with the majority of contributions coming through his campaign's main ActBlue page, http://www.actblue.com/page/massa2008. Massa continues to receive strong support from the netroots, through OpenLeft's candidate page, the Daily Kos 'Orange to Blue' page, and the Blue America page.
Massa's ActBlue hubpage: http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/17761
Massa's campaign site: http://www.massaforcongress.com/index.asp
8. Matthew 25 Network
The Matthew 25 Network is a community of Christians-- Catholic, Protestant, Pentecostal, and Evangelical-- who believe that "people of faith should actively participate in the political process as an important avenue for social change." A federal PAC, the Matthew 25 Network engages in grassroots mobilization and media activism to promote progressive candidates.
The Matthew 25 Network has been collecting donations through their ActBlue hubpage.
Matthew 25's ActBlue hubpage: http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/19684
Matthew 25's website: http://www.matthew25.org/
9. Mark Warner (VA-Sen)
During his tenure as Virginia Governor from 2002-2006, Warner was hailed by Time Magazine as one of "America's 5 Best Governors" in 2005 and was featured in Newsweek's "Who's Next" issue in 2006. Warner is running for what will be Republican John Warner's vacated Senate seat.
Mark Warner has had another banner week on ActBlue, driven by the campaign itself. The Warner campaign has made particularly good use of ActBlue web links, choosing a different link for each part of the campaign's website, so the campaign can track how supporters arrived at the donation page. As with RefCodes, words appended to the end of a web link let the campaign know which part of the page a donor clicked to donate. Distinctive links give campaigns information about what issues are motivating their donors, what language works best, and how to arrange donation buttons.
Warner's ActBlue hubpage: http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/18420
Warner's campaign site: http://markwarner2008.com/welcome
10. Chris Bell (TX-SD-17)
Former Congressman Chris Bell of Houston recently announced his campaign for Texas Senate. Bell is running to replace Kyle Janek, who resigned from his seat after serving two years of a six-year term, in a special election this November. Bell gained attention in Congress by filing an ethics complaint against Tom Delay. Bell lost his seat after Republican-led redistricting in Texas.
Bell's fundraising momentum continues to be driven by an effort called "$20,000 in 20 days for Chris Bell." The campaign set out to raise $10,000 and upped the goal to $20,000 after meeting its target. Bell's is a strong example of using revised goals-- and goal thermometers-- to motivate donors. Bell is also being promoted by Burnt Orange Report, the largest blog in Texas. Burnt Orange's page is one example of an innovative fundraising ask, wherein the bloggers stopped producing content until they raised their goal:
Burnt Orange Report is on strike until our $1,000 BOR community fundraising goal for Bell is met. All front page writers have been demoted and even the senior staff, both Phillip and Matt, have been stripped of their administrative powers. Only you can put us back to work. Only you can put Chris Bell in the Texas Senate.
Did they succeed? Absolutely. In one day.
Bell's ActBlue hubpage: http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/20795
Bell's campaign site: http://www.chrisbell.com
* All fundraising totals represent the amount raised from 12:00 a.m. on August 11 until 11:59 p.m. on August 17, 2008.
