Kerry is catching up!

[rockymountaindem]

He's got more than 7 million dollars at this point. I'm really hoping they make it to their goal. Otherwise Rush et. al. will laugh and laugh and laugh.

We really need to donate and beat these guys. Is there any way I can donate even though I'm only 17?

[goclark]

1. Give your money to your parent to donate for you.

I admire you for wanted to donate.
When I was 17 I didn't have a clue.

I would also suggest that you keep getting your friends interted in the election. Call the Kerry campaign office in your area and ask what you can do to help.

We need voters like you that care about the World.

[mobuto]

3. Just so you know

its a felony to give money to another person with the understanding that they will use it to contribute to a political campaign. Not that anyone will probably care, for a small personal contribution, but its something to keep in mind. I second the idea of volunteering for the camapain. That's a way to make a big difference.

[Kathleen04]

7. I think the stipulation on this is that you can't expect to be reimbursed

I think I read that in the rules/regulations..

[mobuto]

8. Either way

You can't be reimbursed before or after the fact. The money has to be your own - it can't have been given by someone else for the purpose of donation. Again, realistically, the FEC isn't going to know or care if a 17 year gives a small amount of money to their parents to donate to a candidate, but the law is clear.

[HFishbine]

9. No - Don't give money to your parents

That's illegal. It is legal for you to make a contirubtion at your age as long as it is your own money and made in your name. You may be asked if you are under eighteen and if you are making the contribution of your own volition and with your own funds. As long as it's your money and your choice, your can contribute.

on edit: Persons UNDER 17 may not contribute money. There are no age restrictions on volunteering.


http://usgovinfo.about.com/library/weekly/aa112199.htm

[Tarheel_Dem]

2. i don't know the legalities....

surrounding donations at your age, but you are to be commended for your zeal. i've read a lot of your past posts, and i think you're one heck of a good dem, and an inspiration to us old fogeys.

i've made my donations for this month, but i've made a pledge to myself to donate at least $86.43 'til the matching funds. :hi:

[rockymountaindem]

4. Thank you for the compliment.

I like to think of myself as "one of the good ones". lol ;)

I read over there as one of the things you must agree to before donating that you must donate your own funds, not money given to you by someone else. I guess that rules out me giving money to my parents.

I have about $1200 in the bank (I think) and I'd give it all to Kerry right now if I could. I don't need it; especially since my dad has developped a charming habit of just giving me cash for no apparent reason. Plus I'm going to get my old job back down at the pharmacy this summer and I'll make plenty of money, some of which I'd like to donate of I could (I get a raise now that I'm "experienced"). Since I made good dough last year working about 22 hours a week I think I'll also make time to work on Ken Salazar's campaign or at a Kerry office if they open one in my area.

[Tarheel_Dem]

6. good for you........

i have to tell you, this makes me so proud. i have friends & relatives who are 40/50 yrs. old, and haven't a clue what's going on in the world around them. they use the old excuse that all politicians are crooks (maybe to some extent);-) , but it just makes me wanna smack 'em.

sometimes you have to put down the remote, and find other sources for news other than the whore media that's available on cable, but i can't seem to get through to them. but, listening to you...i have renewed hope for the future of this country.

keep speaking out, even when people don't seem to wanna hear it anymore. volunteering your time seems like a good alternative for you in lieu of monetary contributions.

good luck to ya! :yourock:

[leyton]

14. Working on a campaign is a fine idea!

I am underage too, and I don't really have money to donate. I think I've found that I can do more good than a little bit of money by volunteering, and so I've volunteered for my local party before and am now working on a campaign (see plug below). And what's more, I've met a lot of people and made plenty of connections, and I've found out how much goes on at the untrumpeted local level. It's very worthwhile.

[Merlin]

5. There's nothing preventing you from donating, or giving to your parents.

You don't have to be a certain age to donate, as long as you're a US citizen, and the money is truly yours.

Nor is there a problem with giving money as a gift to your parents, so long as it's not conditioned on them giving it as a campaign donation. If you give it unconditionally to them, however, and they then chose to donate it to Kerry, there's not a problem in the world with that, so long as it does not increase their individual donations to the campaign to more than $2,000 each.

Thanks for being a part of the solution!

[Kathleen04]

10. I'd just encourage your parents to give their own money

if they're willing to..

When do you turn 18?..anytime soon? If so, you can just wait and donate then.

If you live near a Kerry office, maybe you can donate your time volunteering. Or maybe there is a congressional race in your area that you can volunteer for.

[ronnykmarshall]

11. Just remember ....

When you donate, please use my Kerry Core link.

[PATRICK]

12. Anyone else having problems?

I donated twice and for each got a later e-mail(long after being accepted, after the money was listed taken out of my account) that I needed to do it over again "follow this link". The URL is consistent except that two numbers are different from the on line donation page but consistent in appearance in every other way.

I am not that knowledgeable ever to be confident about linking to ANY site from an e-mail that wants my money and personal numbers. Nor should the request if genuine(which would be mystery too) ever take that form.

Tried getting through to raise the issue, but obviously the knowledgeable people are busy.

This is alarming either for the problem it reveals OR the fact that there is a lookalike scam trying to get at our funds.

[PATRICK]

13. It does look legit

in case I alarmed anyone. Typing in the full address and looking at the details and links looks genuine. So the main issue is not to do things that way AND there was no problem with my donation in the first place.