Act Blue

History

Created in 2004, Act Blue is an “online clearinghouse for progressive fundraising.” Structured as a federal [[PACS|PAC]], the site assists citizens in raising money for their favorite candidates or [[PACS]], and lets candidates build their warchest via online donations. Since its creation in 2004, Act Blue has raised almost $19 million for progressive candidates and federal committees ([[PACS]]), including Ned Lamont, Jon Tester, Jim Webb and BlogPAC.

A recent feature lets users create [[http://www.actblue.com/directory/search?year=2008&q=presidential|Presidential Draft Accounts]], which collect donations for potential Presidential candidates. If that candidate chooses to enter the race, the donations are released to the candidate. Should the candidate decline, donations are funneled to the DNC

In the coming years, Act Blue is looking to extend their operations into state-level races.

When is Act Blue Right For Me?

If you or your organization is looking for an effective and easy way to raise money for candidates, or if your organization is structured as a Federal [[PACS|PAC]] and needs to raise money for its own budget, Act Blue might be the tool for you.

Anyone can sign up for an account, search their database of eligible candidates or committees, and create a fundraising page. Any Federal [[PACS|PAC]] can apply to have Act Blue handle their online donations.

Examples:

• Future Majority has [[http://www.actblue.com/page/futuremajority|created an Act Blue page]] to raise money for progressive youth groups (someday we might even start to promote it and raise money).
• A [[FaceBook]] group in support of the candidacy of Sen. Barack Obama has created a page called [[http://www.actblue.com/page/beerfornewpolitics|Beer for a New Politics]]. The site asks members of the group to donate the price of a case of beer - calculated at 12.63 - to the Senator’s exploratory committee. At the time of this writing, they had collected just under $400 dollars.

Links

[[http://www.actblue.com|Act Blue Home Page]]