Summary: Key Things to Know About Political Giving
What if you interviewed the nation's best political advisors, organizational leaders, and experienced political donors, and asked them:
“What's the best way to use our money to support American democracy and stop the Trump agenda?”
You’d get this advice.
SUMMARY: KEY THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT POLITICAL GIVING
Your contributions to political causes will make a difference. Political spending is just 1% of U.S. philanthropy. Lots of important races and organizations struggle to raise money, and have budgets of just a few hundred thousand or a few million dollars.
Make candidates part of your political giving. Choosing candidates is overwhelming, so find recommendations like the DCCC’s Red to Blue list or the endorsements of an organization that you support. Money can go even farther when you support state-level candidates and ballot campaigns, which are often out of the headlines.
Also fund political organizations. Campaigns come and go, but organizations are how to build long-term power. Winning elections requires an entire ecosystem of organizations, many of which could make a bigger impact with more funding.
There’s no perfect way to be a political donor, so don’t worry about trying. Waiting to feel like you know just the right impact-maximizing gift to make? Go to Chapter 5 right now, pick three organizations and candidates at random, and give them money. Then come back and learn more.
Give early.Your money is important at any time. But the earlier in a cycle you contribute, the more time there is to plan and invest for the long term.
Give both taxable and tax-exempt gifts. Important parts of the ecosystem are funded with tax-deductible donations, including policy research, non-partisan voter turnout, and more.
State governments are really, really important. Savvy political donors take this as a given. Not only are states are responsible for many policies that directly impact people’s lives, they set voting rules and federal House districts. Many states use these tools to suppress Democratic voters and gerrymander away the representation that their citizens deserve. What happens in states doesn’t stay in states; it affects the balance of power in Congress.
The presidential primary is a guilty pleasure. It’s exciting to choose from so many great candidates, and the primary is one of the most visible political contests so it will get discussed at parties and such. But it’s also a zero-sum contest among candidates who, for all their genuine differences, would produce policies that are more similar than different. Professionals disagree about what type of candidate is most likely to defeat Trump, so it doesn’t make sense to invest a ton of money on anybody’s opinion. Finally, your money won’t go nearly as far in presidential politics as it will elsewhere. So feel free to indulge with your time and money – but remember that the real action lies elsewhere.
Join or create a donor group. Joining or forming a group of political donors makes the process a lot more fun – and helps you to learn from your peers and be more effective. Passion gets people engaged, but relationships keep you engaged.