Black And Latino Political Candidates Are Top Fourth Quarter 2021 Fundraisers
Six of the ten congressional candidates who raised the most money during the final quarter of last year were either Black or Latino, according to a CQ Roll Call analysis.
The findings were a result of diversity in pivotal races and a shift in the focus and strategy of political fundraising overall. Georgia Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock led all House and Senate candidates by raising $9.8 million during the final three months of last year, which will prove crucial to this fall’s midterm elections.
Former NFL and University of Georgia running back Herschel Walker, a Republican running to challenge Warnock, ranked sixth, with $5.4 million raised. Both candidates are Black.
The analysis tallied the total receipts for the quarter and excluded self-funding in favor of only what candidates reported receiving from their donors.
The increase in diversity of candidates and their successful fundraising is fueled, in part, by a rise in small-dollar donors. High-profile campaigns by people of color from Barack Obama to congressional and gubernatorial candidates in 2018 and 2020 inspired others to run.
“Obama laid the foundation, but 2018 was a real turning point where you saw Black candidates running and winning or being super competitive in red districts or states all across the country,” said Doug Thornell, a partner at the political consulting firm SKDK and a former staffer for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, according to CQ Roll Call.
Thornell said 2018 was a pivotal year in the shift as Black candidates ran winning campaigns, including those of Democratic Reps. Lauren Underwood of Illinois, Lucy McBath of Georgia, Antonio Delgado of New York and Colin Allred of Texas. Democrats Stacey Abrams of Georgia and Andrew Gillum of Florida also came close to winning gubernatorial races that year. Abrams is running again this year.
“There was a realization by the Party that not only can Black candidates win in tough places but they can run these electrifying campaigns that can both mobilize and persuade voters,” added Thornell. “In both parties, they’re not limiting who they’re recruiting anymore. It's about time.”
