Here's Where All The Money You Donated To Bernie Sanders Will Go Now
Bernie Sanders officially endorsed Hillary Clinton on Tuesday.
This comes after months of Sanders said he is taking his campaign fight all the way to the Democratic National Convention, which will be held in Philadelphia at the end of July.
Sanders was fundraising for his campaign up till last week. In emails to supporters, the Sanders campaign said,
Our campaign has earned the right to send almost 1,900 delegates to vote on these important issues, but many of them are working folks and the costs of attending the convention are too high.
He was asking supporters to send donations for the delegates to get to the convention.
Some Sanders supporters are now annoyed for a few reasons. They're calling him a sellout for endorsing Clinton. They are calling him a fraud for not taking his fight to be the Democratic nominee all the way to the convention.
They're frustrated they gave money for the convention just for Sanders to endorse Hillary two weeks before the event. Reddit is full of Sanders supporters angry at the last-minute fundraising pitch.
Comment from discussion Endorsement Megathread.
Comment from discussion Endorsement Megathread.
Comment from discussion Endorsement Megathread.
Comment from discussion Endorsement Megathread.
There are a few things that will happen with the remaining money Sanders has from his campaign.
The money will still be used to send Sanders delegates to the convention.
During his endorsement speech, Sanders made it explicitly clear his campaign still has plans for the convention.
He said,
When the roll call at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia is announced it will show that we won almost 1,900 delegates.
Although there are not enough delegates supporting Sanders to get him the Democratic nomination for president, they have other roles to fill.
First, like Sanders said in the speech, they are visual representations of what the Sanders campaign accomplished in getting so much support.
Second, they help vote on the party platform. The party platform is a set of ideas each political party decides collectively they will support.
Sanders disagrees with Clinton on some points of the platform and has specific ideas he probably wants his delegates to support. This includes getting rid of the death penalty and superdelegates and raising the minimum wage to $15.
So, the money will still be used to send delegates to the DNC. Sanders himself is also likely to give a speech at the convention, so campaign money will get him there as well.
Campaigns cost a lot of money.
Like, really, a lot. You've got to pay for a lot of things and a lot of people's time and effort. Sanders will be using your donations to cover whatever's left from all of that.
And if there's still more leftover?
The Federal Election Commission has strict rules about what you can do with any money leftover from a political campaign.
Mostly, you cannot use it for yourself. This will not be filling Bernie's pockets.
Leftover presidential campaign money can be donated to charities or a political party.
You can also donate leftover money to another candidate, but only up to $2,000. Leftover money can also be saved for a future campaign.
And then there's the possibility leftover campaign money can be given back to donors. So, maybe you'll get your $10 back after all.
Citations: 'We're going to the convention': Bernie Sanders continues fundraising as campaign fades (Yahoo! News), Bernie Sanders' Former Fans Blast #SelloutSanders After Hillary Clinton Endorsement (Mic), Transcript: Sanders endorses Clinton at New Hampshire rally (Wisconsin Gazette), What Actually Happens at the U.S. Presidential Conventions? (The Atlantic), Leftover Campaign Funds (FactCheck.org)
