Big donors on the sidelines in early days of 2020 primary

WASHINGTON (AP) - The presidential primary is being jolted to life without a traditional mainstay: Donors. More specifically, their contribution checks.

As many as two dozen Democrats are potentially running for the White House. But party fundraisers say the money race in the early days of the primary is largely frozen.

While some donors have a preferred candidate, often the ones who are spending are spreading their money across the field to hedge their bets.

More often, they're staying on the sidelines until the contours of the primary take shape.

That could make things difficult for some lesser known candidates.

But it also coincides with a seismic shift in Democratic fundraising that is less reliant on big money donors.

Candidates are increasingly relying on small-dollar contributions raised online.