Two months from now, the members of the Democratic National Committee will elect a new party chairman. And we welcome the spirited discussion among candidates, activists, and progressive organizations on the direction and future of the Democratic Party.
Under Chairman Terry McAuliffe's leadership, the DNC has spent the past four years making the power of grassroots activism a top priority. Thanks to those efforts, the Democratic Party is stronger than it has ever been before.
In 2000, the DNC only raised $35 million in small donations. Most of our resources -- over $150 million -- came in large donations. But in 2004, there was a remarkable turnaround. This year, the vast majority of our funding -- over $248 million -- came from average Americans donating what they could, while large donations actually went down to just $105 million -- less than a third of our total.
In the past four years, the DNC expanded its small donor base seven fold, from 400,000 in 2000 to 2.7 million in 2004.
The DNC invested $80 million in grassroots field organizing in 2004 -- 166 percent over 2000.
The DNC fielded more than 2000 organizers in battleground states, and conducted 530 organizing conventions across the country, training nearly 80,000 attendees.
We also mobilized 233,000 volunteers, knocking on 11 million doors, and making 38 million volunteer phone calls.
These remarkable accomplishments could not have been achieved without your tireless dedication to our party and to the enacting the strategic plans we put in place over the past four years.
One thing is certain: The gains of the past cannot be reversed. The power of the grassroots will not put back in the bottle. And the future of the Democratic Party looks stronger than ever. We all need to pull together and work together.
We want your opinion on our party's future. Use this link to give us your ideas.
http://www.democrats.org/feedback
The DNC Internet Team,Doug, Jesse, Nancy, Morra, and Eric
