The New York Times (NYT) reported on the 8th (local time) that Zoom online meetings are emerging as a new fundraising channel for U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris.
According to the report, since Vice President Harris entered the race as the Democratic presidential candidate, the Harris campaign and supporters have held dozens of Zoom fundraising events to recruit small donors. Since a Black women's organization held a Zoom fundraising event last July, events encouraging donations featuring famous actors, star chefs, or entrepreneurs have been held one after another.
The goal of these Zoom fundraising events is not to induce large donations from wealthy asset holders but to encourage individual small donations at the level of $5 to $10. In particular, Zoom meetings have the advantage of costing less than offline fundraising events and allowing participation regardless of time and place, functioning as the main fundraising channel for Harris supporters.
The NYT introduced this by saying, "The amount raised so far through these Zoom meetings alone amounts to millions of dollars," calling it a "post-pandemic version" of past candidates' fundraising broadcasts targeting the public through TV broadcasts. It also added that this type of small donation was a major driving force in the election campaigns of former President Donald Trump and U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders.
On the evening of the 8th, a Zoom fundraising event called "Fellow Koreans for Kamala," hosted by a group of Italian-American Democrats, featured appearances by actor Robert De Niro, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and former New York Mayor Bill de Blasio.
Comedian Lisa Ann Walter, who attended the Zoom meeting that day, told the NYT, "Gathering interesting and fun people on Zoom and making supporters think 'I want to donate $5 here' is much cheaper compared to offline fundraising events."
The NYT explained, "Democratic supporters, anxious about former President Trump's momentum, are actively participating in Zoom fundraising events, which are becoming hits one after another," but added, "However, as the Zoom fundraising events, which initially attracted attention with their freshness, gradually become familiar to people, the amount raised has decreased compared to previous years."
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