Executive Summary
Democratic Campaigns for Virginia House of Delegates processed far greater online donation volume through ActBlue ($279,124) per candidate than Republican Campaigns through either WinRed ($37,551.92) or Anedot ($53,725) in the most tightly contested races.
Online donations are accounting for a greater percentage of total political donations, jumping from 5% to 8.9% for Republican candidates for the Virginia House of Delegates from 2021 to 2025.
Amongst the most competitive races, winning candidates processed donations with WinRed, although they raised less than other platforms.
Virginia House of Delegates Online Donation Platform Performance
In the 2025 Virginia House of Delegates Elections, online fundraising once again played a critical role in the election landscape which saw the Democrats flip thirteen seats. Donation platforms are an essential piece of campaign technology allowing candidates to raise large and small-dollar donations with the click of a button.
The three donation platforms that appeared most often in Spark.Gop’s election technology analysis are ActBlue for Democrats and WinRed as well as Anedot for Republicans.
Payouts to donation platforms are public record and can be found at https://www.vpap.org/. For the thirteen flipped seats in Virginia, Democrat campaigns, on average, paid ActBlue $11,025. Disregarding the flat transaction fee, ActBlue charges 3.95% per transaction. From this publicly available information, we estimate the average Democrat among the 13 flipped Virginia House of Delegates seats processed $279,124 in fundraising through ActBlue.
Below is the complete payout data for Democratic candidates who flipped a seat in the Virginia House of Delegates as well as the calculated approximate donations processed through ActBlue using their standard fee of 3.95%.
Democratic Candidates in Flipped Races and Donation Platform Performance
Candidate | Donation Platform | Margin +/- | Result | Total Payouts to ActBlue 2025 | Approximate Donations Processed Through ActBlue 2025 |
Leslie Mehta | ActBlue | 3.7 | Win | $9,432 | $238,785 |
Lily V. Franklin | ActBlue | 6.7 | Win | $20,040 | $507,342 |
Mark C. Downey | ActBlue | 3.3 | Win | $5,859 | $148,329 |
Elizabeth Guzman | ActBlue | 9.9 | Win | $17,429 | $441,241 |
Virgil Thornton | ActBlue | 7.7 | Win | $5,937 | $150,304 |
May Nivar | ActBlue | 11.2 | Win | $14,536 | $368,000 |
Jessica Anderson | ActBlue | 6.5 | Win | $14,146 | $358,127 |
Nicole Tarlton Cole | ActBlue | 4.4 | Win | $5,809 | $147,063 |
Karen Robins Carnegie | ActBlue | 9.2 | Win | $7,674 | $194,278 |
Kimberly Pope Adams | ActBlue | 7.8 | Win | $12,627 | $319,671 |
Stacey A. Carroll | ActBlue | 6.5 | Win | $7,865 | $199,114 |
John Chilton McAuliff | ActBlue | 1.9 | Win | $13,325 | $337,342 |
Lindsey Dougherty | ActBlue | 5.9 | Win | $8,651 | $219,013 |
*On average, Democratic Candidates that flipped a seat in the Virginia House of Delegates paid ActBlue $11,025. Based on ActBlue’s transaction fee of 3.95%, we find that ActBlue processed approximately $279,124 for these candidates on average.
Republican candidates for the Virginia House of Delegates processed donations through either WinRed or Anedot. For races decided within 11 points, candidates that processed donations solely through Anedot won one race and lost seven while the candidates who processed donations solely through WinRed won seven races and lost three. A.C. Cordoza and Carrie Coyner processed donations through both WinRed and Anedot. Both candidates were defeated.
Despite WinRed candidates winning more frequently in the most tightly contested races, they were generally out-fundraised by candidates who processed donations through Anedot. Republican candidates who processed donations through Anedot paid the platform $2,131 on average. Taking into account the Anedot 4.0% processing fee and disregarding the flat transaction fee, Anedot processed approximately $53,275 in donations in the races where the final margin was less than 11 points.
Republican Candidates who Processed Donations through Anedot and Donation Platform Performance (Races within 11 Point Margin)
Candidate | Donation Platform | Margin +/- | Result | Total Payouts to Anedot 2025 | Approximate Donations Processed Through Anedot 2025 |
Otto Wachsmann | Anedot | 9.1 | Win | $651 | $16,275 |
Kim Taylor | Anedot | -7.6 | Loss | $3,450 | $86,250 |
Paul Milde | Anedot | -6.2 | Loss | $1,253 | $31,325 |
Amanda Batten | Anedot | -5.6 | Loss | $824 | $20,600 |
Bobby Orrock | Anedot | -4.4 | Loss | $197 | $4,925 |
Chad Green | Anedot | -3.1 | Loss | $1,694 | $42,350 |
Chris Obenshain | Anedot | -6.7 | Loss | $3,585 | $89,625 |
Geary Higgins | Anedot | -1.9 | Loss | $6,368 | $159,200 |
Carrie Coyner | Anedot | -5.9 | Loss | $2,843 | $71,075 |
A.C. Cordoza | Anedot | -7.9 | Loss | $440 | $11,000 |
*Republican candidates for the Virginia House of Delegates who processed payments through Anedot. Candidates in these races paid Anedot $2,131 on average. Accounting for 4.0% processing fee and ignoring transaction fee, Anedot processed approximately $53,263 per candidate on average.
This was more than candidates who processed donations through WinRed for these same races, who paid the platform $1,480 on average. Taking into account the WinRed 3.94% processing fee and disregarding the flat transaction fee, WinRed processed approximately $37,551.92 in donations on average for these Republican candidates.
Republican Candidates who Processed Donations Through WinRed and Donation Platform Performance (Within 11 Point Margin)
Candidate | Donation Platform | Margin +/- | Result | Total Payouts to Donation WinRed 2025 | Approximate Donations Processed Through WinRed 2025 |
Wendell Walker | WinRed | 9.8 | Win | $503 | $12,766.50 |
Mike Lamonea | WinRed | -9.2 | Loss | $1,104 | $28,020.30 |
Anne Ferrell Tata | WinRed | 7.9 | Win | $1,748 | $44,365.48 |
Mike Cherry | WinRed | 5.0 | Win | $298 | $7,563.45 |
Rob Bloxom Jr. | WinRed | 5.9 | Win | $239 | $6,065.99 |
Joe McNamara | WinRed | 6.0 | Win | $116 | $2,944.16 |
Madison John Redd Whittle | WinRed | 6.0 | Win | $172 | $4,365.48 |
Tony Wilt | WinRed | 4.5 | Win | $731 | $18,553.30 |
Carrie Coyner | WinRed | -5.9 | Loss | $6,687 | $169,720.81 |
Mike Earley Jr | WinRed | -3.6 | Loss | $3,834 | $97,309.64 |
A.C. Cordoza | WinRed | -7.9 | Loss | $843 | $21,396 |
*Republican Candidates for the Virginia House of Delegates who processed payments through WinRed. Candidates in these races paid WinRed $1,480 on average. Accounting for the 3.94% processing fee and ignoring the flat transaction fee, WinRed processed approximately $37,551.92 on average per candidate.
Conclusion
Democratic Candidates for the Virginia House of Delegates processed significantly more donations through ActBlue than Republican candidates through either WinRed or Anedot in the most tightly contested races. Republican candidates who fundraised with WinRed won more often in the most tightly contested races, but candidates who fundraised through Anedot raised more money on average.
The electoral and fundraising results in the Virginia House of Delegates suggests the Democrats are at an advantage in both voter mobilization and fundraising. Until Republicans level the digital playing field with the Democrats, they will continue to suffer a structural electoral disadvantage. Republican campaigns must place an emphasis on persuasion mail, professional copywriting, robust SMS messaging campaigns, and increased online advertising budget. Online fundraising must become a year-round point of emphasis instead of just a seasonal push for the Republicans.
A critical first step is developing and deepening partnerships between Republican campaigns and specialists working to modernize right-aisle digital strategy. Spark.Gop is committed to building the alliance that helps campaigns adopt the technology, creative, and operational strategy necessary to win on Election Day. Curious what Spark recommends? Check out our campaign digital best practices.