Ruck.us

Last updated
Ruck.us
Industry Software, Campaigns, Civic technology
Founded2011
Headquarters Washington, D.C.
Key people
Nathan Daschle, Jonathan Zucker, and Leo Wang
ProductsConsumer Technology Company
RevenueN/A
Website Ruck.us - 2019 archive

Ruck.us was a political website builder designed for American candidates and organizations seeking state and local-level political office. It was designed for ease of use.

Contents

History

Ruck.us was founded by Nathan Daschle, former executive director of the Democratic Governors Association and son of former Senator Tom Daschle, and Raymond Glendening, former Democratic Governors Association Political Director and son of former Maryland Governor Parris Glendening, in 2011. [1] It began as a second generation social network for politics [2] to break up the two-party system. [3]

In late 2013, Daschle "realized that while technology has revolutionized the more well-funded campaigns, basic tools were still out of reach for the over 1 million candidates at the state and local level" and pivoted into the campaign technology business. [4] He was joined by Jonathan Zucker, the founder of the political fundraising company Democracy Engine and former executive director of ActBlue, [5] as co-founder, CTO and Head of Product, and angel investor. Consultant Leo Wang joined as co-founder and Chief Strategy Officer.

Ruck.us' Board of Advisors included presidential strategist Mark McKinnon, [6] former Bloomberg for Mayor campaign manager Bradley Tusk, well-known pundit and strategist Joe Trippi, former mayor of Washington, D.C. Adrian Fenty, and several others.

Feature Set

Ruck.us aimed to offer the tools to create a “professional and highly functional campaign website". [4]

Its feature set included:

In February 2015, Ruck.us unveiled “Ruck.us Premium,” an expanded feature set that offers users more tools, like custom domain names and multiple-administrator support, for a monthly fee.

Recognition

In recognition of the platform's potential, Nathan Daschle was named one of Campaigns & Elections Magazine's Top 50 Political Influencers for 2014 for his work on Ruck.us and his commitment to “better meet the digital demands of campaigns lower down the ballot.” [7]

Status

In the 2014 election cycle, Ruck.us partnered with the Democratic Parties of Michigan, Maryland and Idaho, bringing hundreds of candidates and organizations online in those states and securing an additional $500,000 in funding and investment. [8] It has since formed partnerships with the Democratic Parties of Georgia, Louisiana, and the Association of State Democratic Chairs.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tom Daschle</span> American politician (born 1947)

Thomas Andrew Daschle is an American politician and lobbyist who represented South Dakota in the United States Senate from 1987 to 2005. A member of the Democratic Party, he led the Senate Democratic Caucus during the final ten years of his tenure, during which time he served as Senate Minority Leader and Majority Leader.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bob Ehrlich</span> Governor of Maryland from 2003 to 2007 (born 1957)

Robert Leroy Ehrlich Jr. is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 60th governor of Maryland from 2003 to 2007. A Republican, Ehrlich represented Maryland's 10th legislative district in the House of Delegates from 1987 to 1995 and Maryland's 2nd Congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1995 to 2003.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kathleen Kennedy Townsend</span> American attorney and politician

Kathleen Hartington Kennedy Townsend is an American attorney who was the sixth lieutenant governor of Maryland from 1995 to 2003. She ran unsuccessfully for governor of Maryland in 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Democracy for America</span> Vermont-based political action committee

Democracy for America(DFA) was a progressive political action committee headquartered in Burlington, Vermont. Founded by former Democratic National Committee Chair Howard Dean in 2004, DFA led public awareness campaigns on a variety of public policy issues, trains activists, and provided funding directly to candidates for office, until it ended operations in 2022. At its peak, the organization had dozens of local chapters and more than a million members in the United States and internationally.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Donna Brazile</span> American author, educator, and political activist and strategist (born 1959)

Donna Lease Brazile is an American political strategist, campaign manager, and political analyst who served twice as acting Chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC). She is currently an ABC News contributor, and was previously a Fox News contributor until her resignation in May 2021. Brazile was also previously a CNN contributor, but resigned in October 2016, after WikiLeaks revealed that she shared two debate questions with Hillary Clinton's campaign during the 2016 United States presidential election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Democratic Governors Association</span> Organization of U.S. Democratic governors

The Democratic Governors Association (DGA) is a Washington, D.C.-based 527 organization founded in 1983, consisting of U.S. state and territorial governors affiliated with the Democratic Party. The mission of the organization is to provide party support to the election and re-election of Democratic gubernatorial candidates. The DGA's Republican counterpart is the Republican Governors Association. The DGA is not directly affiliated with the non-partisan National Governors Association.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2002 Maryland gubernatorial election</span>

The 2002 Maryland gubernatorial election was held on November 5, 2002. Democratic Governor Parris Glendening was term-limited and could not seek a third term. Republican Bob Ehrlich defeated Democrat Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, making him the first Republican governor of Maryland since Spiro Agnew, who served from 1967 to 1969. As of 2024, this is the last time Charles County voted Republican in a statewide election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve Schmidt</span> American political strategist (born 1970)

Stephen Edward Schmidt is an American political and corporate strategist. He is best known for working on Republican political campaigns, including those of President George W. Bush, California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Arizona Senator John McCain during his 2008 presidential campaign.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Macon Phillips</span>

Macon Phillips is an American political strategist who served as the Coordinator of the United States Department of State Bureau of International Information Programs from 2013 to 2017. He reported to Rick Stengel, the Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs. Phillips is the former White House Director of New Media, in which capacity he had oversight responsibility for WhiteHouse.gov.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014 United States Senate election in South Dakota</span>

The 2014 United States Senate election in South Dakota took place on November 4, 2014, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the state of South Dakota, concurrently with the election of the Governor of South Dakota, as well as other elections to the United States Senate in other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014 Maine gubernatorial election</span>

The 2014 Maine gubernatorial election took place on November 4, 2014 to elect the governor of Maine. Incumbent Republican governor Paul LePage won re-election to a second term, defeating Democratic nominee Mike Michaud, the U.S. representative from Maine's 2nd congressional district, and independent Eliot Cutler, an attorney and second-place finisher from the 2010 gubernatorial election. This is currently the most recent election that Maine elected a Republican governor. Primary elections were held on June 10, 2014.

Jonathan Zucker is a political technology entrepreneur and campaign finance attorney best known as the founder of Democracy Engine, the first COO and second CEO of ActBlue and the founder of It Starts Today.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nathan Daschle</span>

Nathan Daschle is a political strategist who is the President & COO of The Daschle Group, a Public Policy Advisory of Baker Donelson. He was previously the Executive Vice President for Political Strategy at Clear Channel Media and Entertainment, where he ran a business unit dedicated to political advertising. Daschle was also the founder and CEO of Ruck.us, which provides a digital toolkit for political candidates.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1994 Maryland gubernatorial election</span>

The 1994 Maryland gubernatorial election was held on November 8, 1994. Incumbent Democratic Governor William Donald Schaefer was ineligible for re-election. Prince George's County Executive Parris Glendening emerged victorious from the Democratic primary after defeating several candidates. Maryland House minority leader Ellen Sauerbrey, who would also be the 1998 Republican nominee for governor, won her party's nomination.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 Maryland gubernatorial election</span>

The 2018 Maryland gubernatorial election was held on November 6, 2018. The date included the election of the governor, lieutenant governor, and all members of the Maryland General Assembly. Incumbent governor Larry Hogan and Lieutenant Governor Boyd Rutherford, both Republicans, were re-elected to a second term against Democrat Ben Jealous, the former NAACP CEO, and his running mate Susan Turnbull. This was one of eight Republican-held governorships up for election in a state carried by Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 United States Senate election in Delaware</span>

The 2018 United States Senate election in Delaware took place on November 6, 2018, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the State of Delaware, concurrently with other elections to the United States Senate, elections to the United States House of Representatives, and various state and local elections.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 United States House of Representatives elections in Colorado</span>

The 2018 United States House of Representatives elections in Colorado were held on November 6, 2018, to elect the seven U.S. representatives from the state of Colorado, one from each of the state's seven congressional districts. The Republican and Democratic Party primaries in Colorado were held on June 26, 2018. The elections coincided with the gubernatorial election, as well as other elections to the House of Representatives, elections to the United States Senate, and various state and local elections.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2020 Vermont gubernatorial election</span>

The 2020 Vermont gubernatorial election was held on November 3, 2020, to elect the Governor of Vermont. As Vermont does not impose term limits upon its governors, incumbent Republican Governor Phil Scott was eligible to run for re-election to a third two-year term in office. On November 18, 2019, he confirmed that he was running for reelection, but did not yet publicly announce his campaign. On May 28, 2020, he officially announced his candidacy but stated that he would not campaign, maintain a campaign staff, or fundraise because of the state of emergency due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Vermont. The primary was held on August 11. Scott won re-election to a third term in a landslide, defeating Progressive and Democratic nominee, Lieutenant Governor David Zuckerman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Rhode Island</span>

The 2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Rhode Island were held on November 8, 2022, to elect the two U.S. representatives from the state of Rhode Island, one from each of the state's 2 congressional districts. The elections coincided with other elections to the House of Representatives, elections to the United States Senate and various state and local elections. It followed a primary election on September 13, 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 California Attorney General election</span>

The 2022 California Attorney General election was held on November 8, 2022, to elect the Attorney General of California. Incumbent Democratic Attorney General Rob Bonta was appointed to the office on April 23, 2021, following the resignation of Xavier Becerra to become the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services. Bonta won a full term.

References

  1. "Political Sons Launch Ruck.us, A Social Engagement Platform Based On Issues, Not Parties". TechCrunch. 27 September 2011.
  2. Overly, Steven (12 March 2012). "Web start-up Ruck.us aims to engage the politically independent". The Washington Post.
  3. "Ruck.us Breaks Up Party Politics on the Social Web". Mashable. 11 May 2012.
  4. 1 2 "Member Spotlight: Ruck.us Founder Nathan Daschle Aims to Supercharge Local Campaigns". 1776.vc. August 22, 2014. Archived from the original on June 18, 2015.
  5. "Jonathan Zucker".
  6. Gonzales, Nathan L. (5 September 2011). "Two Former Democratic Aides Raise a Ruckus". Roll Call.
  7. "The Influencers 50: Nathan Daschle". Campaigns and Elections Magazine. October 23, 2014. Archived from the original on 2016-03-01.
  8. "Tom Daschle's Son Raises Half A Million To Remake Ruck.us Into The Kickstarter Of Local Politics". TechCrunch. 19 August 2014.