Refund Policy

Before a Campaign Is Triggered

During the pledge phase, your card has not been charged. You can cancel your pledge at any time with one click on the campaign page — no refund is needed because no payment has been taken.

During the 48-Hour Cooling-Off Period

When a campaign is triggered (the candidate files to run), all pledgers receive an email notification. Charges are not processed until 48 hours after the trigger. During this window, you can still cancel your pledge — again, no charge and no refund needed.

After Your Card Is Charged

Once the cooling-off period ends and your card is charged, your contribution has been made. Refund requests after charge are handled on a case-by-case basis. Eligible scenarios include:

• Duplicate charges due to a technical error
• Billing errors (incorrect amount charged)
• Unauthorized transactions

To request a refund, email support@darkhorsecandidate.com with your name, the campaign name, and a description of the issue. We aim to respond within 2 business days.

Platform fees (processing fee and tip): Dark Horse Candidate can refund these directly.

Contribution amount: Once charged, your contribution is transferred directly to the candidate's authorized campaign committee. Refunds of the contribution portion are handled by the campaign committee in accordance with FEC rules. We will forward your request to the committee on your behalf.

Campaign Creation Fee

The $100 campaign creation fee is non-refundable under all circumstances, including campaign rejection, expiration, or cancellation. This is disclosed at the time of payment.

Failed Charges

If your payment method is declined when a campaign is triggered, we will retry up to 3 times over the following days. You will receive an email after each failed attempt with a link to update your payment method.

If all attempts fail, your pledge is marked as failed. You can update your payment method on the campaign page at any time to re-activate your pledge and have it retried on the next charge cycle.

Disputes and Chargebacks

If you believe a charge is unauthorized, please contact us first at support@darkhorsecandidate.com. We can often resolve issues faster than a formal bank dispute. If you do file a chargeback with your bank, we will provide transaction records including your pledge confirmation, cooling-off notification, and charge receipt as evidence.

Contact

For refund questions, contact:
Dark Horse Candidate
Email: support@darkhorsecandidate.com