Blogswarm!

I came across this 2005 column called Netroots activism arrives on CNN.com. It reflects on the effect bloggers had on the OH-2 special election, and the Democratic candidate, Paul Hackett A quick read but definitely a few choice quotes:

Democrat Paul Hackett, running in a special election for an Ohio congressional seat that most national Democrats wrote off as hopeless.

But Hackett, a Marine who served in Iraq, showed fight.

"We have to say it loud that we are proud to fight for what this great country stands for," he said...

The bloggers raised a lot more money for the Hackett campaign than the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

"We raised around $500,000 from the netroots, which means we outspent the National Republican Congressional Committee and we're three times as relevant as the DCCC in terms of cold hard cash," Brigham said.

On the final day of the campaign they needed $30,000. "So Bob from Swing State sent out an email, made phone calls, said, 'Here is what we need, we need $30,000 in a very short period of time.'" Schechner said. "And the next day, ActBlue delivered a check for $60,000."