Early fundraising figures from the second-quarter Federal Election Commission reports offered a glimpse into the early machinations of the 2028 Democratic primary.
Some Democrats quickly boasted their fundraising prowess before the Wednesday deadline at 11:59 p.m. in a sign that they are likely serious contenders who could seek the White House.
Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) raised $25 million across his federal accounts and touted sending $10 million to boost Democrats ahead of this year’s midterm elections, including $2 million to the Democratic National Committee and $3.5 million to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. Fellow Arizona Sen. Ruben Gallego (D) raised $472,544.64 but had more than $2.08 million cash on hand.
Gov. Josh Shapiro (D-PA) raised $12 million in the second quarter and $50 million in the bank from January 2025 to June 2026.
Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-GA) raised $20 million in his closely watched reelection battle against Rep. Mike Collins (R-GA) and ended the quarter with a staggering $42 million cash on hand. Collins raised a paltry $2.1 million in contrast to Ossoff.
“They’re telegraphing their presidential ambitions for sure,” said Michael Ceraso, a Democratic strategist who previously worked on Pete Buttigieg’s presidential campaign. “They want to flex how much money they can raise … because they know the media is going to look at two things: it’s polling and fundraising.”
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) raised $1.5 million in this period and has $15 million cash on hand. Her campaign manager also announced that the New York lawmaker raised $4.87 million across all her accounts from over 138,000 individual donors. Ocasio-Cortez has been one of the most prolific fundraisers. By the second quarter of 2025, she had raised $15.4 million more than any other House member.
Other potential 2028 candidates, such as Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA), will also need to show they can rake in similar amounts of money to indicate they have momentum on their side.
Potential progressive White House contenders such as Ocasio-Cortez and Khanna face a particular challenge. “They need to be able to show like heightened individual contributions to show that they can keep up with this level of fundraising,” said Achyuth Sarath, a former 2024 Democratic delegate.
Ocasio-Cortez’s aide, Oliver Hidalgo-Wohlleben, bragged online that “This cycle alone, over 500,000 people from all 50 states have chipped in to support the campaign.”
Khanna has faced tough questioning over his endorsement of Graham Platner, the former Democratic Senate candidate in Maine, after he exited the race due to allegations of sexual assault against an ex-girlfriend. But that came after the second quarter closed in June, so Khanna’s fundraising amount won’t reflect any fallout from the Platner scandal. Gallego has also been plagued by allegations of campaign finance violations and potential sexual misconduct through his friendship with former Democratic California Rep. Eric Swalwell, also accused of sexual misconduct, but that erupted before the second quarter closed.
Yet with the Democrats already stacking their coffers, questions are emerging about how potential presidential candidates will spend their money.
“I imagine he can use quite a bit of that [$50 million] to spread around and to support Democratic candidates in close races this year,” said Democratic strategist Brad Bannon about Shapiro. “And you know that he can use the money he has to stack up IOUs for political support in ’28.”
Kelly told the New York Times that he wants to help Democrats win the House and the Senate, “But it’s not going to be easy and it takes resources, and I want to make sure that I do everything I can to help get people across the finish line.”
Democrats also pointed out that while money is one sign of momentum, the party is also facing a revolt of successful socialists who have toppled incumbent lawmakers in primary contests. Led by New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, socialists have proven that the Democratic base is more willing to side with exciting candidates over the establishment.
“We know exactly what donors want,” said Cersaso. “Will that be compatible with primary voters? My answer is no. I think voters and donors are very far apart in reality, and this is an age-old argument.”
Any 2028 Democrat also has to weigh the impact of former Vice President Kamala Harris possibly vying for the White House after her defeat in 2024 to President Donald Trump.
“We’re having all these conversations right now about the future of the party and whether, you know, we lean too heavily into like the white male authentic aesthetic of Graham Platner,” said Kaivan Shroff, a political communications expert who worked on Hillary Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign.
That doesn’t mean Harris is guaranteed to be nominated if she were to run.
“I don’t think a single donor thinks that there’s going to be an anointing of Kamala Harris for this,” said Shroff, who was a delegate for Harris in 2024. “If she is going to come back in, she’s going to need to fight for it.”
PETE BUTTIGIEG KEEPS 2028 WHITE HOUSE BID ON THE TABLE
Harris, sensing the party momentum shift, reportedly called Mamdani last month and met with pro-Palestinian activists ahead of the 2028 race. And after raising more than $1 billion during the 2024 campaign, Sarath said he does not doubt that Harris will be able to raise huge amounts again.
“But I don’t know if she has the sort of grassroots support that you need to win the general,” he added. “I think we have to see, but right now I’m just not sure that she has it.”