Political Donors Spent Enough Money Last Election to Rebuild Detroit Twice

image
Author: Steve Baker
Created: 01 Dec, 2014
Updated: 15 Oct, 2022
2 min read

At a time when fewer than 35 of 435 Congressional races are competitive, political spending in midterm elections has never been higher. The projected total for the 2014 elections was $3.67 billion. This includes spending from outside groups, candidates, and political parties -- funded by small and big donors alike -- according to a breakdown of spending by the Center for Responsive Politics.

Source: Maryland PIRG and Demos

Source: Maryland PIRG and Demos

Ten races alone ended up costing more than $40 million as a result of outside donations and partisan spending. The most expensive race in national history was North Carolina's Senate contest between Kay Hagan and Tom Tillis, costing $111,000,000.00 in total -- an average of $16 per voter. Alaska was the most costly state on a per voter basis, coming out to $120.59 spent per voter.

Outside group spending totaled $557.5 million, with the two largest contributors being the conservative American Crossroads/Crossroads GPS and the liberal Senate Majority PAC. The number of political donors has also dropped since 2010 from 817,464 to 666,773 -- only 0.2 percent of the U.S. population. Yet overall spending is still trending upwards.

Compared to the 2010 elections, spending increased by almost $40 million, only a third of which came from small donors (those who gave less than $200), according to a report by the Maryland PIRG and Demos. Interestingly, Democrats relied more heavily on small donors. They raised about $205.3 million from small donors compared to the $150.7 million raised by Republicans.

A total of $30 million was spent by non-affiliated donors -- $17 million less than either of the top two partisan PACs.

Joint Fundraising Committees were more active during this midterm election, raising a total of $168.7 million from just 509 organizations. The deficit between the highest funded Democrat (House Senate Victory Fund) and Republican (Boehner for Speaker Cmte) organizations was close to $30 million in favor of Republicans.

Republicans received the most funding from donations larger than the $123,200 individual donor cap. Seven of the top ten largest donors contributed solely to Republican campaigns.

It seems fewer donors are investing more campaign dollars than ever in fewer races. As a result, their impact will only grow as small donors continue to drop out of the fray. Thus, it is reasonable to suspect that average voters, ones who cannot afford thousands of dollars in campaign contributions, will find fewer representatives willing to hear them in Washington, D.C.

IVP Donate

Photo Credit: Ken Schulze / shutterstock.com

Latest articles

A judge's gavel.
Super PAC Spending Tops $49 Million in Most Expensive State Judicial Election in History
According to Buying Time 2025 election spending data as of March 26, 2025, more than $81.4 million has been spent on the Wisconsin Supreme Court race between Dane County Circuit Court Judge Susan Crawford and Waukesha County Circuit Court Judge Brad Schimel, making it the most expensive state judicial election in US history. ...
27 Mar, 2025
-
4 min read
Man holding his head sitting at a table.
Landmark Legislation Introduced to Address Mental Health Crisis Among Correctional Officers
On the second anniversary of Federal Correctional Officer Blake Schwarz’s death by suicide, an Iowa congresswoman has reintroduced a significant bill aimed at combating the ongoing mental health crisis among correctional officers....
26 Mar, 2025
-
2 min read
American institutions.
Chuck Todd: When It Comes to Public Mistrust in Institutions, The Parties Just Don't Get It
Last week, the national election reform group Open Primaries held a Zoom conversation with former Meet the Press moderator Chuck Todd to discuss voters' growing mistrust in American institutions. It was part of the group's ongoing Primary Buzz Discussion Series. ...
26 Mar, 2025
-
3 min read