The Impact of Structural Factors on Small Dollar Donors in American Politics

• In Event: The U.S. Campaign Finance System and Consequences for Representation

Abstract

Many view small donors as a counterweight to the corruption concerns and representative distortions introduced by “big money” in American elections. As part of a larger project, we investigate structural factors that might increase (or decrease) small donations in American politics and, when possible, how these factors impact normative considerations like the demographic and ideological representativeness of the donor pool. We theorize that small donor giving is primarily a consumption-based dynamic, which puts a premium on structural features that enable emotive and identity-based mobilization. To explore these dynamics, we investigate four interrelated factors that might impact small donor giving, including technological change, organizational activism, the media environment, and campaign finance rules. We leverage a range of data and both qualitative and quantitative methods in this analysis, including analysis of financial records from fundraising platforms like ActBlue, public fundraising appeals on social media and through email, interviews with fundraisers, and a cross-state analysis examining how campaign finance programs and laws affect variation in small donor giving over two decades. In this latter analysis, we also explore how institutional features can affect the demographic and ideological makeup of the small donor pool, with important implications for our understanding of small donors and reforms that might facilitate their most positive effects.

Authors

• Zachary Albert, Brandeis University

• Raymond J. La Raja, University of Massachusetts, Amherst