The Hill campaign reporter Reid Wilson on Monday said that he thinks seeing which Democrat can build the biggest network of small-dollar donors is becoming a straw poll-like method for the party.
“That’s actually becoming one of the early touch points in the race for the 2020 presidential nomination on the Democratic side, who can build the biggest list of small-dollar donors?” Wilson told Hill.TV’s Joe Concha on “What America’s Thinking.”
“Democrats don’t have straw polls like Republicans do. It’s in their rules that they’re not allowed to have straw polls, but that’s becoming the new straw poll,” he continued.
“If you can build that big list in the beginning, you’re going to be viable towards the end,” he said.
Wilson’s comments come as the 2020 Democratic primary field begins to take shape, with Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) announcing her exploratory committee and former Vice President Joe Biden slated to make a decision in the coming weeks.
Other potential contenders, such as former Rep. Beto O’Rourke (D-Texas) and Sen. Kamala Harris (D-Calif.), have made headlines in the past with their ability to raise large amounts from small donors.
O’Rourke notably raised more than $70 million in his unsuccessful bid to unseat Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) in the 2018 midterm elections.
— Julia Manchester
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