Thanks for this article Matt. I just donated to MT, FL, TX, NE Senate races and MT, MI and NC State supreme court races. Everyone should please donate if you can.
Democrat Gabe Vasquez (New Mexico’s 2nd Congressional District) is an incumbent in a red-leaning district. The Dems need him to hold that seat in order to have any hope of taking back the House. His opponent, Yvette Harrell, is a hard right MAGA Republican who believes all abortions should be banned under any and all circumstances. She served one prior term (Vasquez defeated her in 2022). Donating to Gabe’s campaign would be great.
You say "Money can’t buy first person testimonials, social proof, or communities ties" but I feel like just throwing a bunch of "Democratic Party sponsored BBQs" or something of the sort would be more effective than any ads. Is there any law stopping a campaign from just doing a bunch of giveaways/community events to effectively bribe voters?
What would you think about donating directly to the Democratic party, to the House Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, or to the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee which focuses on state legislative races? Wouldn't the Democratic Party be expert in which races are most important? which need the most money?
Reading these recommendations, it strikes me as more than a little weird that I, a resident of Maryland, can put my money behind a candidate for the Montana Supreme Court. Why is this okay when it’s not okay for Russian oligarchs to donate to the Trump campaign? I’m not arguing that anyone here should forgo making legal donations in this campaign cycle, but I’d be quite happy to see this banned in the future.
Thank you, Matt. I appreciate your care in curating these candidates, and providing their races with context and history. I gave some bucks here and there, and hope to keep doing so, in the weeks ahead. I honestly don't know any undecided voters. There's my echo chamber for ya. Your substack is a brilliant education, and I feel grateful for it.
I'm an ad professional and have volunteered to help in two state senate races. My experience has left me very skeptical of ad spend in such geo constrained races, digital ads get really inefficient when going after such tiny chunks of the population compared to state or national. When I've looked at the data it's almost impossible for a rep-level candidate to the move the needle with ads. So even that is probably not a great use of donations past a certain level.
Not mentioned here (probably because Matt can't research every city council election even ballotpedia only covers 82) but donating to local candidates can make a big difference (promoting YIMBYism and growth).
Everyone here seems to be having fun plotting strategy so more power to them. Still, the thought of giving a dime of my hard earned money to a politician is nauseating to me. I'd rather set the money on fire.
Thanks for this article Matt. I just donated to MT, FL, TX, NE Senate races and MT, MI and NC State supreme court races. Everyone should please donate if you can.
Democrat Gabe Vasquez (New Mexico’s 2nd Congressional District) is an incumbent in a red-leaning district. The Dems need him to hold that seat in order to have any hope of taking back the House. His opponent, Yvette Harrell, is a hard right MAGA Republican who believes all abortions should be banned under any and all circumstances. She served one prior term (Vasquez defeated her in 2022). Donating to Gabe’s campaign would be great.
You say "Money can’t buy first person testimonials, social proof, or communities ties" but I feel like just throwing a bunch of "Democratic Party sponsored BBQs" or something of the sort would be more effective than any ads. Is there any law stopping a campaign from just doing a bunch of giveaways/community events to effectively bribe voters?
My contribution has been to create my own political ad: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J56nDDxkXk4
Rudy Salas is blue dog endorsed too! California “valleycrat” and one of the most moderate legislators in the state according to boris-shor scores
What would you think about donating directly to the Democratic party, to the House Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, or to the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee which focuses on state legislative races? Wouldn't the Democratic Party be expert in which races are most important? which need the most money?
Reading these recommendations, it strikes me as more than a little weird that I, a resident of Maryland, can put my money behind a candidate for the Montana Supreme Court. Why is this okay when it’s not okay for Russian oligarchs to donate to the Trump campaign? I’m not arguing that anyone here should forgo making legal donations in this campaign cycle, but I’d be quite happy to see this banned in the future.
> it’s a lot more important to do things in the world than to just read about them.
A most succinct, valuable advice for life.
Thank you, Matt. I appreciate your care in curating these candidates, and providing their races with context and history. I gave some bucks here and there, and hope to keep doing so, in the weeks ahead. I honestly don't know any undecided voters. There's my echo chamber for ya. Your substack is a brilliant education, and I feel grateful for it.
Another option is to donate to Swing Left and let them decide. They definitely aren't as granular though
https://swingleft.org/funds/swing-left-impact-2024/learn-more
Shah really can win here in AZ, and money really can make a difference there.
Thanks for this very useful guide.
I'm an ad professional and have volunteered to help in two state senate races. My experience has left me very skeptical of ad spend in such geo constrained races, digital ads get really inefficient when going after such tiny chunks of the population compared to state or national. When I've looked at the data it's almost impossible for a rep-level candidate to the move the needle with ads. So even that is probably not a great use of donations past a certain level.
Adam Frisch has a ton more money than the GoP Candidate, but he could still probably use help in CO-3.
Not mentioned here (probably because Matt can't research every city council election even ballotpedia only covers 82) but donating to local candidates can make a big difference (promoting YIMBYism and growth).
Everyone here seems to be having fun plotting strategy so more power to them. Still, the thought of giving a dime of my hard earned money to a politician is nauseating to me. I'd rather set the money on fire.