EMILYs List Announces Record Fundraising and Major Growth of Community in 2016 Cycle

January 10, 2017

EMILYs List Announces Record Fundraising and Major Growth of Community in 2016 Cycle

The organization raised over $90 million in the 2016 election cycle, surpassing its previous record by 50 percent

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today EMILYs List, the nation’s largest resource for women in politics, announced that it raised over $90 million in the 2016 election cycle, which makes the total the organization has raised to help recruit, train, and elect pro-choice Democratic women in its 31-year history over $500 million.

The record-breaking fundraising haul in 2016 marks a 50 percent increase from the previous record EMILYs List held of raising over $60 million in a single cycle.

In 2016 the organization also saw a surge in membership, showing the strength of the EMILYs List movement across the country. Between November 2014 and November 2016, EMILYs List’s community expanded by over two million people and now totals over five million.

EMILYs List plans to build off that momentum in 2017 by undertaking a major effort to recruit, train, and elect more pro-choice Democratic women to office nationwide. As an official sponsor of the Women’s March on Washington, the organization will hold a candidate training on January 22nd for approximately 500 women interested in running for office who will be attending the march.

“Our movement is stronger and more important than it ever has been before — and that’s why millions of men and women from across the country have joined the EMILYs List community,” said Stephanie Schriock, president of EMILYs List. “While there will be challenges ahead, we know that our community is ready to fight back against the dangerous, anti-woman policies of this Republican Congress and White House by bringing more pro-choice Democratic women’s voices to all levels of government. These record-breaking numbers are a testament to the strength of our candidates, and to decades of tireless work to ensure that women are heard and represented in our political system.”

EMILYs List, the nation’s largest resource for women in politics, has raised over $500 million to support pro-choice Democratic women candidates – making them one of the most successful political organizations ever. Our grassroots community of over five million members helps Democratic women wage competitive campaigns – and win. We recruit and train candidates, support strong campaigns, research the issues that impact women and families, and turn out women voters. Since our founding in 1985, we have trained over 9,000 women to run and helped elect 116 women to the House, 23 to the Senate, 12 governors, and over 800 to state and local office. Forty percent of the candidates EMILYs List has helped elect to Congress have been women of color – including every single Latina, African American, and Asian American Democratic congresswoman currently serving.