Draft funds

This exclusive ActBlue feature puts small-dollar donors in the driver’s seat by enabling grassroots communities to raise money for someone they think should run for federal office before a campaign makes any official announcement. In this way, small-dollar donors can try to “draft” a candidate, and if that person runs for office, they will start their campaign with both grassroots support and funds. Draft funds are a concrete way to encourage women, people of color, and those from other underrepresented communities to run for office.

There are a few important things to know about draft funds:

1. Draft funds are limited and only available for federal offices.
2. Only groups or communities, not individual supporters, can create draft funds.
3. Different groups can create multiple draft funds for the same potential candidate.
4. If the person named by a draft fund does not run for office, the money goes to a different recipient specified on the contribution form — most often the group managing that particular draft fund. The contribution form notes this information for donor awareness. 

Draft funds differ from nominee funds on ActBlue: Nominee funds go to whichever candidate wins a specified Democratic primary and becomes the Democratic nominee. Draft funds are a persuasion tool to encourage someone to run for a specific office.

To create a draft fund on ActBlue, groups must have demonstrated grassroots communities. If your group wants to create a draft fund, please contact us for more information.

If you have any questions, please contact our support team using the email address you use to access your ActBlue account.