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://feeds.feedburner.com/ActBlueCampaignNewswire.
**This week's list is condensed to include only brief biographical notes of our Top 10 Candidates and Committees because of ActBlue's scaled down staff due to the Democratic National Convention. Next week, the Campaign Newswire will return to its regular format.**
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1. Eric Massa | NY-29 | $32,976.94
2. Campaign For Our Country | $28,156.08
3. Kay Hagan | NC-Sen | $25,444.86
4. Equality for All | $25,137.50
5. Gavin Newsom | CA-Gov | $24,280.00
6. Rick Noriega | TX-Sen | $22,089.12
7. Scott Kleeb | NE-Sen | $16,918.58
8. Russ Warner | CA-26 | $15,802.55
9. Martin Heinrich | NM-01 | $14,348.04
10. Mark Warner | VA-Sen | $13,157.50
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1. Eric Massa (NY-29)
Naval veteran Eric Massa is a candidate for Congress in 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's ActBlue hubpage: http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/17761
Massa's campaign site: http://www.massaforcongress.com/index.asp
2. 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." Two weeks ago, 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 put the PAC on our list for the first time last week, and bumped it up to number 2 this week.
Campaign for Our Country's ActBlue hubpage: http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/9487
Campaign for Our Country's website: http://www.campaignforourcountry.com/
3. Kay Hagan (NC-Sen)
Kay Hagan is a Campaign Newswire regular and is in the top 3 for the ninth week in a row. 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 ActBlue hubpage: http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/18560
Hagan's campaign site: http://kayhagan.com/welcome
4. Equality for All
Equality for All is a diverse coalition encouraging Californians to vote against a ballot initiative ("Prop 8") that would rewrite the California Constitution to define marriage as a valid union between only a man and a woman. Equality for All is comprised of nearly 50 organizations, including LGBT, pro-choice and civil rights organizations, and organized labor and religious groups. California supporters can take the "Vow to Vote No" on Prop 8 at http://eqfed.org/campaign/vow.
No Prop 8, Equality for All website: http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/19788
No Prop 8, Equality for All campaign hubpage: http://noonprop8.com
5. Gavin Newsom (CA-Gov. Exploratory Committee)
Gavin Newsom is the first-term Mayor of the City and County of San Francisco and is currently exploring a run for governor of California in 2010. The contributions this week for Newsom, the youngest San Franciscan mayor in 100 years, are for his exploratory committee, which he launched in July 2008. Newsom made international headlines in 2004 when the city-county clerk began issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples under his instruction. The Mayor continues to attract national media attention after implementing a universal health care system for all San Franciscans and signing the City onto the Kyoto Protocol, an environmental agreement in which signatories pledge to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2012.
Newsom's exploratory committee hubpage: http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/20517
Newsom's exploratory committee website: http://www.gavinnewsom.com
6. 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.
Noriega's ActBlue hubpage: http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/18187
Noriega's campaign site: http://www.ricknoriega.com/
7. Scott Kleeb (NE-Sen)
Kleeb is a fourth generation Nebraskan, who lived in military bases overseas as a child and has worked in the Sandhills of Nebraska and as a ranch hand in eastern Colorado. While working on the dissertation for his Ph.D. from Yale, Kleeb traveled all over the Western United States and saw firsthand the difficulties that farmers, ranchers and small business owners were facing as part of a shrinking middle class. Kleeb now works to promote locally-grown food and responsible business practices as Director of Operations for Morgan Ranch, a Nebraska-based beef company.
Kleeb's ActBlue hubpage: http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/18920
Kleeb's campaign site: http://www.scottkleeb.com
8. 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's ActBlue hubpage: http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/16419
Warner's campaign site: http://www.warnerforcongress.com/
9. Martin Heinrich (NM-01)
Albuquerque City Councilor Martin Heinrich is running for Congress in New Mexico's 1st District. Heinrich, once director of a foundation dedicated to science and environmental education, has served on several boards focused on environmental, open space, and urban issues, and has used his time on the City Council to work toward making New Mexico a leader in alternative energy and energy efficiency. Heinrich is running against Republican Darren White, who was recently aided by a George W. Bush fundraiser in Albuquerque.
Heinrich's ActBlue hubpage: http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/18006
Heinrich's campaign site: http://www.martinheinrich.com
10. 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.
Warner's ActBlue hubpage: http://www.actblue.com/entity/fundraisers/18420
Warner's campaign site: http://markwarner2008.com/welcome
* All fundraising totals represent the amount raised from 12:00 a.m. on August 18 until 11:59 p.m. on August 24, 2008.
