Embattled Democrats enjoyed a major grassroots fundraising surge in October, according to data shared exclusively with MSNBC. And party officials say it’s all thanks to President Donald Trump.
The Democratic National Committee raised more than $6 million through grassroots donations in October, internal numbers show. That’s more than three times what it raised during the same month in 2017, the last time weary Democrats headed into an off-year election after losing to Trump.
Notably, the windfall came as the government was shuttered for the entirety of the month, with Republicans blaming Democrats for the pain caused by the deadlock. But it also coincided with Democrats sweeping nationwide elections, big and small, and 10 months into Trump’s second presidency, which Democrats have seen as figuratively and literally wrecking democracy.
“Democrats’ decisive victories all across the country have turbocharged that energy and we’re going to make sure we channel our supporters’ enthusiasm to keep winning in 2026 and beyond,” Roger Lau, executive director of the DNC, told MSNBC.
A former DNC official who was granted anonymity in order to speak candidly about the party’s fundraising challenges and lack of leadership says Trump is the ‘best fundraiser for the Democratic Party right now.’ The same official also expressed surprise that donors still trust the DNC since it ‘hasn’t really been doing anything right.’
The minority party is now looking squarely ahead to next year’s midterm elections, hoping to break the Republicans’ stronghold on power and counting on the president to help them.
“Trump is the best fundraiser for the Democratic Party right now, and even better than he was the first time,” a former DNC official told MSNBC, acknowledging that donors are giving to the DNC “in the absence of anywhere else to give.”
Shutdown strategy infighting aside, Democrats are clawing back from their 2024 election collapse and engaging — not just at the ballot box, where they dominated in federal, state and local elections last week — but with their wallets. The party may even be benefiting from what it is lacking: a clear leader in the wake of its catastrophic 2024 presidential race.
The former DNC official also expressed surprise, given last year’s debacle, that voters “now trust the DNC to be the vehicle where they get engaged, because the DNC hasn’t really been doing anything right.” That person was granted anonymity in order to speak candidly about the party’s lack of leadership and its fundraising challenges.
The DNC, for its part, has touted historic investments in this year’s elections, including $3.2 million each in Virginia and New Jersey — where Democrats won gubernatorial elections last week — and $175,000 in Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court retention race, resulting in resounding wins across the board.
As of October, the DNC had a war chest of almost $12 million, compared with roughly $7 million cash on hand at that point in 2017. But Democrats, who are crawling out of the depths of debt from Kamala Harris’ bank-breaking defeat in November 2024, still trail far behind the Republican National Committee, which had $86 million heading into November.
So far this year, the DNC has raised $72 million in grassroots donations — more than in 2017 and 2019 combined, putting it on stronger financial footing heading into the midterms.
The fundraising boon is a welcome bright spot for Democrats, who have struggled to win back unhappy big-dollar donors hesitant to write checks after their presidential nominee blew $1.5 billion in her 15 weeks as a candidate. The DNC paid out $1.6 million in related expenses in September alone, according to Federal Election Commission filings. The DNC’s Election Night fundraising text last Tuesday had one of its best yields of the year, according to a DNC official not authorized to speak on the record who said the average individual donation was $36, with schoolteachers winning a gold star for being the most prolific donors of all the professions. “We encourage left-wing donors to keep sending money to the DNC, where it can be used to pay off Kamala Harris’ campaign debts instead of actually being used in next year’s midterms,” RNC press secretary Kiersten Pels said in a statement to MSNBC. Republican donors, however, are being asked to give to all things Trump, from the president’s new White House ballroom and his MAGA Inc. super PAC to other visions of grandeur, including the so-called Arc de Trump and other causes Trump wants funded. Veteran Democratic political operatives are urging the party faithful to stay positive and keep the groundswell of donations flowing in order to take back control of Congress next November and repair the party. “There is still a lot of work to do, but I think we can stop with all of the doom and gloom,” Doug Thornell, a longtime Democratic strategist, told MSNBC. “2026 should be a very good year for Democrats if we can maintain this energy and focus on winning.”
Julia Jester
Julia Jester covers politics for MS NOW and is based in Washington, D.C. Recommended
