Where to Give Now: March 2019

With the first fundraising deadline of the 2020 cycle rapidly approaching (midnight on Sunday, March 31st, for those who have not been bombarded with calls and emails yet), I wanted to take a moment to stress why giving now is smart money.

First, there’s a reason why EMILY’s List has the best acronym in politics — early money IS like yeast (it makes the dough rise). In our current, terrible campaign finance system, fundraising is one of the only ways to show viability and money begets money.

Second, early communications and organizing set the tone and lay the groundwork for the race. Every candidate wants to be out there communicating with voters early on, defining their own message and setting the policy agenda. Early communications can be more positive in tone, focused on issues, and — bonus points! — are much more cost-effective than during a crowded fall campaign season.

Finally, money helps scare off challengers. This has been shown time and time again but we have great examples to point to in 2018: Sens. Tammy Baldwin, Sherrod Brown, and Debbie Stabenow all raised significant war chests and did not face top tier challengers. This cycle, we need to shore up House and Senate incumbents (see more below) early on to take those races off the map and focus on offense.

So while things at the presidential level are very much in flux, concentrate on the incumbents who need those early dollars. It’s not as sexy as flipping a seat in the final weeks but it’s easier and cheaper in the long run.

Is It 2020 yet?

With multiple candidates having declared already, the 2020 presidential election is well underway. While we will be providing more information about grassroots organzations, down-ballot races, and other investments, we know all eyes are on the race for the White House.

Here are a few resources:

• Follow the magazines we curate on Flipboard, Election 2020 and The Political Power of Women

• FiveThirtyEight has an interesting analysis of the Democratic electorate

• A wonderful article by NARAL President Ilyse Hogue, Let’s Talk 2020 Women

• Axios has a tracker of who is in, who is a maybe, and who is out

• Ballotpedia has a rundown of candidates

• More to come!

From Passion to Impact: Inside a Growing Push to Help Individual Donors Get More Strategic

Here’s a great article from Inside Philanthropy about encouraging donors to use a “portfolio” strategy for investments — something we strongly encourage as well.

Where to Give Now: October 18, 2018

Voters are voting! Many states have started early voting. Vote.org (which saw an incredible spike in registrations after Taylor Swift gave them a shout out in an Instagram post) has a guide to early voting in each state along with other terrific resources for voters.

We are three weeks out, coming into the home stretch. If you are planning to make additional donations, give sooner rather than later. Budgets are being finalized in the coming days. If you are making a large donation via a Donor Advised Fund or other third-party entity, make sure they know this is a rush donation and let the campaign or organization know to expect the donation. Recommendations for candidates and organizations can be found below. 

We created an Election Night tracker, with top US House races, all US Senate races, all Gubernatorial races, key down-ballot races, and ballot measures listed by poll closing times. To view and follow along, email alexandra@ALadvising.com for access to our database.

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Women Drove Post-2016 Election Growth in Giving to Progressive Groups

Not surprisingly, women significantly increased their charitable giving to progressive causes following the 2016 presidential election. Women are the Resistance!

Women Drove Post-2016 Election Growth in Giving to Progressive Groups