Crosspartisan Coalition, Including D21, Urges Presidential Candidates To Embrace Transparency, Disclose Their Campaign “Bundlers”

Thirteen organizations from across the ideological spectrum, including Democracy 21, have urged Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, and independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., to publicly reveal information about their top campaign fundraisers before Election Day.

The coalition effort was organized by Issue One.

Called “bundlers” for the bundles of campaign donation checks they collect, these elite fundraisers frequently raise vast sums of money for presidential candidates, often hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of dollars.

This enables them to gain access and influence with those candidates. Under both Democratic and Republican Administrations, campaign bundlers have received plum postings, such as ambassadorships and positions on commissions.

“Government accountability depends on transparency in our campaign finance system, and that includes transparency about presidential campaign bundlers,” the groups wrote in letters mailed and emailed to the Harris, Trump, and Kennedy campaigns. (Kennedy suspended his campaign in August but continues to urge his supporters in non-battleground states to vote for him and will appear on a number of state ballots.)

The letter continues: “Your campaign is already required by law to regularly report detailed information about any federal lobbyists who bundle campaign contributions on your behalf. Implementing a robust bundler disclosure system that publicly displays information about all individuals who raise $50,000 or more for your campaign would help demonstrate your commitment to transparency.”

The coalition called on the presidential candidates to “regularly and meaningfully release information about your campaign bundlers before Election Day,” ideally “in tandem with all upcoming campaign finance reporting deadlines with the Federal Election Commission.”

Presidential candidates must file new campaign finance reports with the FEC by midnight on Friday, September 20. Additional pre-election campaign finance reports must be filed on October 20 and 24.

It has long been a bipartisan tradition for presidential candidates to voluntarily share information about their campaign bundlers.

Candidates ranging from President George W. Bush to President Barack Obama to 2008 GOP presidential nominee John McCain to 2016 Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton each released some information about their campaign bundlers.

Likewise, during the 2020 presidential campaign, the Biden-Harris campaign disclosed some information about their campaign bundlers.

However, former President Trump opted not to voluntarily reveal any information about his campaign bundlers during either his 2016 or 2020 presidential campaigns.

Nevertheless, media outlets including Puck News and CNBC have reported that Trump’s campaign has at least seven tiers of bundlers receiving special perks and access — from those who raise at least $15,000 (“Trump Force”) to those who raise at least $1 million (“Ultra MAGA”).

Last year, NBC News reported that the Biden-Harris reelection campaign had at least four tiers of bundlers — those who raised at least $46,000; those who raised at least $750,000; those who raised at least $1.25 million; and those who raised at least $2.5 million.

To date, there has not been any public disclosure of these elite fundraisers’ identities.

The 13 organizations that signed the letters to the candidates are:

• American Promise
• Business for America
• Campaign Legal Center
• Common Cause
• Democracy 21
• Issue One
• League of Women Voters of the United States
• Michigan Campaign Finance Network
• National Legal and Policy Center
• OpenSecrets
• Project On Government Oversight
• Public Citizen
• RepresentUs

Letter to Vice President Kamala Harris

Letter to former President Donald Trump

Letter to Robert F. Kennedy Jr.