According to figures from Nielsen, several demographic groups that have traditionally donated disproportionately to Republicans switched allegiances in the first half of the year and became more likely to give to Dems. Overall, Democratic presidential candidates have raised significantly more money than Republicans, and these January-through-June numbers show that it is in part a result of their finding a route into the wallets of the well educated and affluent as well as suburbanites in general:
The study showed that 64 percent of the donors in the top 10 donor segments gave to Democratic candidates compared to 36 percent for Republican candidates. The numbers were also similar for donations, with Democratic candidates receiving 62 percent of the donated dollars and Republicans receiving 38 percent.
Nationally, Democrats are out-raising Republicans, capturing nearly 60 percent of all donated dollars. This capture rate is even more acute in urban segments where Democrats average closer to 70 percent across most segments. Suburbia is more varied, from a high near 70 percent to a low of 38 percent, but an overall average capture rate of 55 percent for Democrats.
For bonus numbers, check out the MarketingVox analysis, which breaks down the support by candidate for the leaders. Gotta love the names of some of these segments — Kids & Cul-de-Sacs? White Picket Fences? Low-Rise Living? Not sure if that last one refers to a choice of living arrangements or of jeans. If it were Low-Rent Living instead, it’d sum up the e.politics style quite well.
- Rudy Giuliani received 14 percent of all donations (35 percent of donations to Republicans). He is attracting more support from urban and metro areas and looks to do better with a mix of both liberal and conservative segments including Close-in Couples (17 percent overall; 53 percent share of donors among Republicans), Cosmopolitans (15 percent overall; 48 percent of Republicans), and Second City Elite (20 percent overall; 39 percent of Republicans).
- Mitt Romney received 14 percent of all donations (36 percent of donations to Republicans). He has success in suburban areas with more traditional lifestyle segments that include Domestic Duos (35 percent overall; 62 percent of Republicans), Kids & Cul-de-Sacs (30 percent overall, 58 percent of Republicans) and White Picket Fences (34 percent overall, 56 percent of Republicans).
- Hillary Clinton received 21 percent of all donations (35 percent of donations to Democrats). She draws contributors from Family Life segments, including Suburban Pioneers (48 percent overall; and 68 percent of Democrats), Low-Rise Living (34 percent overall; 51 percent of Democrats), Beltway Boomers (22 percent overall; and 46 percent of Democrats), which are households with a high percentage of children.
- Barak Obama received 20 percent of all donations (33 percent of donations to Democrats). He does well with a number of blue-collar and mid-scale segments including Blue-Chip Blues (24 percent overall; 45 percent of Democrats), City Roots (28 percent overall; 40 percent of Democrats) as well as younger segments like Bohemian Mix and Urban Achievers (approximately 29 percent overall; 39 percent of Democrats, each) and Young Digerati (26 percent overall; 37 percent of Democrats).
– cpd