That was fast.
Some 17 days after announcing her 2020 Democratic presidential bid before a sizable crowd of 20,000, California Sen. Kamala Harris has issued an urgent email headlined “Falling Short.”
In it, her campaign pleads for donations in time for the next Federal Election Commission reporting period, which campaigns use to show if they have the needed financial support to push through the Iowa caucuses.
“I need to be direct: right now, we are at a real risk of falling short of our February fundraising goals,” said the email signed “Kamala.”
Democratic campaign experts said that it will cost candidates $50 million to $100 million just to get to the early 2020 Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primary. Several campaigns are competing with each other for donations and staff. Often as FEC deadlines near, campaigns issue dire warnings not because they are falling short but because they want to pump up their final number.
Below is her full email:
“I need to be direct: right now, we are at a real risk of falling short of our February fundraising goals. I hope you will give me a moment to explain what these monthly fundraising goals mean — and why your support matters so much.
But first, I have to ask: will you pitch in a donation of $10 or more to our campaign for president? We are rejecting contributions from corporate PACs and lobbyists — putting our campaign directly in the hands of our supporters. Each grassroots donation we receive helps us move closer to reaching our goals.
In the coming days, I am excited to head to New Hampshire and South Carolina to host town halls, and soon, I will head to Iowa and Nevada. I can’t wait to hear directly from supporters why they are excited about joining our people-powered campaign.
But — maybe most importantly — I am looking forward to answering questions about my vision for our country, and hearing more about the issues that matter most to your communities.
And I am excited to report that our campaign team is also growing with each passing day. We are staffing up at our headquarters, building out departments to run the most successful campaign we can. And we are hiring diverse staff across the country to begin outreach, organizing on the ground to build our movement — a true grassroots-up model.
This is how we are going to win: putting the power in the hands of the people who are powering our campaign. People just like you.
You are a founding member of our campaign — so it is important to me that you know exactly where your contributions go. The plans I listed above are just some of the amazing things on the horizon for our team — things that YOU made possible.
This is exactly why we cannot afford to fall short of our monthly fundraising goals. I wouldn’t ask if it didn’t mean so much: can you help us get back on track for February with a donation of $10 or more today?
Thank you for your help,
— Kamala”
