Every State Blue is a hybrid political action committee (PAC) founded in late 2016 with the mission of supporting Democratic candidates in Republican-leaning districts and others traditionally under-resourced by Democratic outside-spending groups. Initially known as “It Starts Today,” the organization was launched after the 2016 elections by Jonathan Zucker, a former COO and CEO of ActBlue, to harness small-dollar recurring donations from grassroots supporters. The group operates state-level projects, including Blue Missouri, Blue Tennessee, and Blue Ohio and was raising funds to launch Blue Indiana as of 2025. ^{1 2}

Background

Every State Blue was founded in 2016 as It Starts Today by Jonathan Zucker, former COO and CEO of ActBlue and former director of finance and operations for the Democratic National Committee. Zucker founded the group to utilize his experience at ActBlue to “direct recurring small dollar donations to every single Democratic candidate for U.S. Congress and Senate.” ³

In 2017, Michele Hornish, who later became the PAC’s executive director, joined the group to spearhead the PAC’s state-based project, founding Blue Missouri in 2017 as well as another project of the PAC called Forgotten Democrats. The group later recruited David Pepper, a former chair of the Ohio Democratic Party, to join the leadership of the organization and found Blue Ohio. ²

Activities

Every State Blue operates the state-based projects Blue Missouri, Blue Ohio, and Blue Tennessee. As of 2025, the group was raising funds to launch Blue Indiana, with a $64,000 goal. The group operates mostly through soliciting small-dollar, recurring donations and in turn making larger contributions to Democratic candidates for office at the state and federal levels. The group’s state-level PACs are organized separately and fund state-level candidates, while the federal Every State Blue PAC often receives and distributes funds from and to its state-level counterparts. ^{2 4 5}

Every State Blue is organized as a hybrid PAC, also known as a Carey Committee. The PAC was mostly inactive during the 2016 election cycle, only raising $5,000; however, in the 2018 election cycle, it raised $4.16 million. The group reported over $7.5 million in contributions during the 2020 election cycle, with the vast majority of that, $6.8 million, supporting Sara Gideon’s failed effort to unseat U.S. Senator Susan Collins (R-ME). The group also gave over $220,000 to Joe Biden’s 2020 presidential campaign and $106,000 to Amy McGrath’s unsuccessful U.S. Senate campaign in Kentucky. ⁶

People

Jonathan Zucker is the founder and president and treasurer of Every State Blue. He previously was ActBlue’s first COO and later its second CEO, and worked at the Democratic National Committee (DNC) as national director of operations for finance. ⁷

Michele Hornish is the executive director of Every State Blue and oversees the PAC’s day-to-day operations and expansion of state projects, promoting the group’s “contest every seat” approach and small-dollar subscription model. She also authors the “Small Deeds Done” political-action newsletter, and a Substack. ^{8 2}

Other individuals in the group’s leadership include David Pepper, a former Ohio Democratic Party Chair and founder of Blue Ohio, and Jessica Piper, executive director of Blue Missouri and a former Missouri state legislative candidate. ^{9 10}

1. “Every State Blue PAC Summary, 2024.” OpenSecrets. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.opensecrets.org/political-action-committees-pacs/every-state-blue/C00630012/summary/2024
2. “About.” Every State Blue. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://everystateblue.org/about/
3. “Raising Dollars for Under-Funded Democratic Candidates with It Starts Today/AOS: Jonathan Zucker.” The Great Battlefield podcast. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://greatbattlefield.com/episode/raising-dollars-for-under-funded-democratic-candidates-with-it-starts-todayaos-jonathan-zucker/
4. “Home.” Every State Blue. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://everystateblue.org/
5. “Every State Blue Donors, 2024.” OpenSecrets. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.opensecrets.org/political-action-committees-pacs/every-state-blue/C00630012/donors/2024
6. “Every State Blue Expenditures, 2020.” OpenSecrets. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://www.opensecrets.org/political-action-committees-pacs/every-state-blue/C00630012/expenditures/2020
7. https://everystateblue.org/about/
8. [1] Substack. Michele Hornish. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://substack.com/@michelehornish
9. “Blue Ohio Launch.” BlueOhio.org. April 21, 2022. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://blueohio.org/blue-ohio-launch/
10. BlueMissouri. Accessed September 17, 2025. https://bluemissouri.org/