Mike Huckabee fans who signed up for Huckabee updates after watching his Fox News program are now on his campaign email list.

Huckabee hosted a weekly Fox News program that ended in January as he explored a run for president. A regular announcement on the program told viewers, “if you'd like to comment on tonight's show and share with me your thoughts, I welcome your response. Go to my website, MikeHuckabee.com. You can connect with me on Facebook, sign up to follow my regular messages on Twitter, or leave comments on the feedback section at MikeHuckabee.com.”

Viewers who visited the website were greeted by a message asking them to sign up by giving their email address and zip code -- two key pieces of data for political campaigns. 

On his final episode, Huckabee told viewers to keep updated “on my whereabouts and plans on my website, MikeHuckabee.com.” 

Huckabee's Fox program undoubtedly helped grow his website's list. A 2012 advertising rate card by Newsmax.com, which had managed his list, stated that MikeHuckabee.com has a list size of 625,000. The Huckabee image above, which was retrieved from his site in March 2014, claims the list has “1,000,000+ subscribers.” 

Media Matters created a Gmail account that signed up for Huckabee's email list on November 19. For months, the email address received normal Huckabee-authored emails and sketchy third party advertising sent by Huckabee ("#1 Item You Should be Hoarding!"). After Huckabee officially announced his campaign on May 5, the list converted to emails that solicited campaign donations and carried the disclaimer, “Paid for by Huckabee for President.”

It is unclear if Huckabee's previously for-profit email list was contributed or rented to his campaign.

Huckabee's Fox News-promoted email list gives him a leg up on candidates who didn't have a weekly forum in which they could promote their websites. The Washington Post wrote in February that “a great e-mail list still trumps a buzzy social media account. And it's not close.” The Post quoted strategists stating that email “is still the largest driver of fundraising and a volunteer program” and “is still the killer app.”

Politico's Ken Vogel wrote in 2009 that “email addresses and zip codes have become increasingly valuable, not only for their unrivaled ability to solicit millions in contributions in explosive bursts, but also as commodities in and of themselves.”

Huckabee has previously acknowledged how his Fox News platform has helped his candidacy, telling RealClearPolitics last year that he's more well-known among primary voters in Iowa because “I've been in these people's homes every week.” 

While Huckabee's email list is now used for campaign purposes, he previously used it as a moneymaking venture and rented it out to a wide range of shady characters, including sketchy medical cures; a for-sale stock pundit that was fired from Fox; a financial firm that was fined by the government for engaging in “deliberate fraud”; and a survival food company that profits off of readers' fears of being “herded into FEMA camps.”