Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang ‘s campaign just achieved its single largest fundraising haul yet, raking in $750,000 from over 18,000 contributions in only 24 hours, with the average donation valued at $41. The news comes two months after the dark horse candidate’s campaign raised an impressive $10 million in the third quarter of 2019, which was a vast improvement from the $2.8 million he raised in the second quarter.
According to campaign chief Nick Ryan, Yang’s support continues to grow as people who are “hungry for real change” follow the campaign.
“If the political establishment was shaken when they saw what we accomplished in Q3, they better brace themselves in the coming months because we’re going to continue to shatter expectations and win this race.”
In response to the impressive achievement, the 44-year-old serial entrepreneur took to Twitter to post a video thanking his supporters for helping the campaign reach its $2 million fundraising goal for the week, which they officially hit Sunday morning, The Hill reports.
As Politico noted, the massive haul came in the absence of a fundraising event, such as an end-of-quarter push or debate. In addition, Yang has yet to threaten to drop out of the race should his supporters fail to meet the fundraising goal, as others — such as Cory Booker — have done.
Thank you #YangGang – we did it! $2 million in a week!! You all are amazing. Fired up to take this campaign to new heights in December and 2020! ???? pic.twitter.com/jl6gylDB5h
— Andrew Yang????? (@AndrewYang) December 1, 2019
Speaking to Politico , Ryan said he believes that the lack of a significant event leading to the fundraising haul is a reflection of the strength of Yang’s supporters.
“Just putting that through a lot of organic channels, not having to drum up any sort of event around it, and we have a base that goes above and beyond,” Ryan said.
In the hours and days leading up to the milestone, Yang’s supporters took to social media to push donations and come up with ideas for how to reach their goal. One user suggested guaranteeing a certain amount of followers for every person that donates, while another encouraged the final push of donations with positive energy.
“#YangGang we’re about to hit the end of November fundraising goal! Just a tiny bit more! People-powered money is how @AndrewYang overcomes the establishment.”
Given his strong base of grassroots support, Yang has rarely had trouble with fundraising in recent months. But while he has already met the donor requirements for the December debate, a Google Docs spreadsheet by Politico’s Zach Montellaro reveals that Yang needs 4 percent or higher in one more DNC-approved poll to take the stage.
Thus far, Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Warren, Pete Buttigieg, Kamala Harris, and Amy Klobuchar have qualified for the December debate.