Powered by grassroots donations, ECU Raises $44 million for itself and endorsed candidates
ECU was one of the top 10 spenders in House races; fourth among issue groups on the Democratic side in 2018
End Citizens United (ECU) today announced that it raised $44 million for the 2018 election cycle. ECU’s fundraising includes $33 million raised for End Citizens United – money that helped fuel ECU’s robust independent expenditure program and candidate work; $2 million raised for Fight for Reform, ECU’s state level affiliate; and $9 million raised directly for 143 ECU endorsed candidates and ballot initiatives.
The $44 million haul represents a $9 million increase from its projected $35 million for the midterms and a $19 million increase from 2016 when it raised $25 million. It has added 216,000 new donors this cycle, a 42% increase since 2016.
A recent analysis from The Washington Post found ECU to be one of the top 10 independent spenders in House races and fourth among issue groups on the Democratic side. ECU was the only group of the ten organizations to be entirely grassroots funded.
The $9 million directly raised for candidates and ballot initiatives includes $8 million raised for ECU’s endorsed candidates and $1 million raised for Fight for Reform’s endorsed candidates and ballot initiatives at the state level. As an example of ECU’s grassroots donors’ enthusiasm and strength, ECU members contributed over $800,000 directly to Senator Heidi Heitkamp’s campaign, $500,00 to Senator Claire McCaskill’s campaign and $430,000 directly to Beto O’Rourke’s campaign. On the House side, ECU donors have contributed nearly $65,000 to Katie Porter running in CA-45 and $40,000 to Elissa Slotkin, candidate in MI-08.
“People across the country are fed up with the rigged system in Washington that serves special interests,” said Tiffany Muller, president of End Citizens United. “Through grassroots donations they are stepping up to support candidates and organizations, like ECU, that will take on the mega donors and corporate interests. And they are fundamentally reshaping the way we fund campaigns, allowing candidates to to be more accountable to the people they are elected to serve. We are proud to led the fight to elect reformers and give American families a voice in our democracy.”
Since its inception in 2015, ECU has grown to 4 million members with more than 450,000 donors who give an average contribution of $14. For the 2018 cycle, ECU has endorsed 236 federal candidates. For the first time this year, its state-level affiliate project, “Fight for Reform” endorsed candidates in state level races with 133 endorsements.
Unlike dark money groups, ECU is entirely transparent and every penny is disclosed with the Federal Election Commission. Unlike Super PACs, ECU adheres to contribution limits and is entirely grassroots-funded with an average contribution of $14.
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