Where are Idaho’s governor candidates getting their money?

Since late May, Democrat Paulette Jordan has received five times as many contributions to her campaign for governor as her main opponent, Republican Brad Little.

Yet, Little has raised almost twice as much money as Jordan.

Why the difference? Their campaigns — and their respective parties — rely on two divergent fundraising models, one old and one new.

Jordan’s 11,387 contributions were boosted by a Democratic fundraising juggernaut Republicans have not been able to replicate: an online donations site that attracts supporters from across the U.S.

Little’s $974,400 in contributions hinged in part on a Republican tradition that some Democrats openly eschew: tapping into the deep pockets of party, business and special-interest loyalists.

Getting the money

In Idaho, candidates on both sides have long relied on a tried and true fundraising strategy: build a party list of past and possible donors and, each election, pitch them to donate and attend fundraisers. This strategy relies on advertising, networking and good old pavement-pounding to find like-minded individuals and businesses.

But Jordan has tapped into a new-to-Idaho Democratic fundraising strategy: use the internet to raise small donations from people across the country, most of whom cannot even vote for the candidate to whom they are giving money.

State candidates have now filed campaign finance reports covering donations and spending from May 26 to Oct. 21.

Half the itemized contributions Jordan received in that time came through ActBlue. The service was launched in 2004 as a nonprofit Democratic online fundraising service, kind of like a PayPal or GoFundMe for liberal candidates and causes.

“The new model is email marketing, which is where 50 percent of our donations have come from,” said campaign spokesperson Dana Ferris. “We’ve found it to be convenient and effective.”

Do an online search for Brad Little and one of the first results is a link to his campaign website.

Do an online search for Paulette Jordan, and among the top links is an ActBlue-hosted ad to donate $5 to $250 to her campaign. With just a few clicks, political supporters from Riggins to New Orleans can donate to Jordan’s campaign.

So far in the 2017-2018 election cycle, ActBlue has received and disbursed $1 billion nationwide to federal and local races and causes.

This online fundraising phenomenon is part of the reason Democrats are dominating Republicans in fundraising in many races across the country, according to an Oct. 29 report from the Center for Responsive Politics.

Small-dollar grassroots donors pushing for a sea change raised $385 million for 9,335 Democratic campaigns, progressive organizations and nonprofits on ActBlue from July through September. That’s more than double the amount raised during the same period in 2016 before the presidential election, according to ActBlue.

For example, in Texas, Democratic U.S. Rep. Beto O’Rourke raised more than $38 million from July through September. That’s more than three times as much as his opponent in the U.S. Senate race, Republican U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, according to federal campaign finance reports.

O’Rourke, who is not accepting corporate or PAC contributions, received more than $25 million from individuals via ActBlue, according to an Oct. 25 Center for Responsive Politics report.

In conservative Idaho, Little has outraised Jordan 2:1 so far this year — he has brought in $2.4 million to her $1.1 million.

But Democrats have brought in more funds than Republicans in two other competitive statewide races this fall.

Democratic lieutenant governor candidate Kristin Collum has raised $122,000 this year. Republican nominee Janice McGeachin has raised about $70,000, in addition to loaning her campaign about $100,000.

Democratic superintendent of schools candidate Cindy Wilson has raised about $140,000 this year, while incumbent Republican Superintendent Sherri Ybarra has raised about $50,000.

Nearly 40 Idaho Democratic federal, statewide and legislative candidates on the November ballot are using ActBlue, including Collum, congressional candidates Cristina McNeil and Aaron Swisher, and about 30 legislative candidates.

Republicans have struggled to launch a comparable model for conservative candidates and causes.

“I don’t think there is any equivalent conservative fundraising system,” said Jaclyn Kettler, an assistant professor who specializes in American politics in the School of Public Service at Boise State University. “ActBlue is definitely the leader in this type of fundraising/bundling platform.”

The advantage of fundraising online is the vast pool of potential donors — anyone across the globe with internet access and a credit card can be reached with minimal effort and expense. The disadvantage is the donations are primarily for small amounts. For large donations, candidates still need to put in the time and money wooing other investors.

“So far [ActBlue] has been a important tool in Democrats’ fundraising toolbox, but it’s definitely just one fundraising mechanism,” said Kettler. “It helps aggregate money for candidates and highlight candidates. I think some candidates, especially incumbents, already have established fundraising bases and practices and need this type of system less.”

Little falls in the latter category when it comes to fundraising. About 42 percent of his contributions came from political committees, businesses and corporations. The rest came from individual donors, according to an analysis of his campaign finance reports.

“The lieutenant governor prefers meeting with folks in their living rooms and dining-room tables, discussing his vision,” said Little’s spokesperson Zach Hauge.

Spending the money

The two gubernatorial candidates differ not only in how they raise their money, but also in how they spend it.

Each candidate spent about $600,000 on their respective campaigns from May 26 through Oct. 21, according to campaign finance reports.

About two-thirds of Little’s expenditures went toward conventional campaigning — radio and television ads, mailings, signs, brochures and events. The remaining third went toward staff/consultants, travel/food and operational expenses.

Jordan spent about one-third on campaigning and two-thirds on staff/consultants, travel/food and operational expenses.

Little’s campaign has been traditional and party-centric — television ads, mailers and events promoting his and the GOP’s values in unison. This approach of candidate and party unity just culminated in a traditional statewide bus tour, where he joined other Republican candidates for office.

“Having just finished a 70-plus city, 44-county [GOP] bus tour, we couldn’t be more excited about the thousands of Idahoans that came out to show support,” Hauge said.

While Jordan’s is a grassroots campaign — she is not accepting any corporate or PAC money — it is also unconventional in how she reaches across party lines. She has also traveled Idaho this year, visiting all the counties, but most of her travels have not been part of orchestrated Democratic events.

“We feel our outreach to Republicans has been impactful,” said Ferris, her spokesperson. “We’ve tried to cross the aisle, and haven’t overtly attached to the Democratic establishment, necessarily, but rather have discussed issues important to every Idahoan.”

Jordan also has eschewed traditional campaign trappings of print and broadcast advertising and mass mailings. In the final week of the campaign, she launched her first television ad — a 30-second pitch highlighting her travels across the state, people she has met and her platform.

Unlike Idaho’s GOP gubernatorial primary, attack ads have not made an appearance so far, although both Jordan and Little have taken off the gloves during recent debates.

“[O]ur focus has always been on face time, personal meet-and-greets and social networking,” Ferris said.

The campaign has found social media to be an effective and inexpensive way to reach voters, as long as they are online.

It has posted live streaming of events, videos and photos. A simple post on social media about Jordan’s priorities, an event or a reminder to register to vote can reach tens of thousands of followers within seconds, at little to no cost.

Ferris referenced one post, an image of a pie chart depicting Jordan’s platform. Almost 200,000 people saw it on Facebook and Instagram, she said, “without us putting any money into it.”

Printing and mailing 200,000 fliers would have cost thousands of dollars.

But voters who are not online may miss such a message. Hauge said that’s why Little’s campaign has shied away from going all-in with an online presence.

“Much like the internet, the lieutenant governor is nearly everywhere in the state, traveling and meeting with voters,” Hauge said. “We utilize any form of media that allows us to share Brad’s vision.”

Election Day is Tuesday: what to know

Election Day is Nov. 6. Polls will be open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. that day.

Idaho allows same-day voter registration. To check if you’re registered, visit idahovotes.gov. To register at the polls, you’ll need a photo ID and proof of residency.

Who’s on your ballot? Visit the Idaho Statesman’s voter guide to hear from the candidates in their own words.

Visit IdahoStatesman.com starting around 9 p.m. Tuesday night for election results.

For more information, visit the elections websites for Ada County or Canyon County, or call 208-287-6860 (Ada) or 208-454-7562 (Canyon).

This story was originally published November 2, 2018 at 4:06 PM.