Your weekly newsletter on money in politics. |
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This week in money-in-politics |
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2020 election to cost $14 billion,
blowing away spending records
The total cost of the 2020 election will nearly reach an unprecedented $14 billion, making it the most expensive election in history and twice as expensive as the previous presidential election cycle.
That’s according to an estimate from the Center for Responsive Politics. The Center previously estimated the election would see nearly $11 billion in total spending. But an extraordinary influx of political donations in the final months — driven by a Supreme Court battle and closely watched races for the White House and Senate — pushed total spending past that $11 billion figure with weeks yet to go before Election Day.
Even amid a pandemic, everyone is giving more in 2020, from ordinary individuals making small donations to billionaires cutting eight-figure checks to super PACs. Women are smashing donation records, and Americans are increasingly donating to candidates who aren’t running for office in their state.
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GOP committees raise $1.2 billion through joint fundraising committees
The 2020 election cycle has seen a slew of records broken, from individual races to total spending. Joint fundraising committees are also setting fundraising records this year, and it’s one area where Republicans — especially those running for U.S. Senate — are leading the way. Joint fundraising committees have raised $2 billion this cycle, a jump from 2016’s record-breaking $1.2 billion haul. Republican candidates are leveraging the power of joint fundraising committees to gain financial support.
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In “toss up” race, Texas donors favor Trump over Biden
Democrats are intensifying their efforts to win Texas’s 38 electoral votes just one week before the election, but Texans are favoring the Republican presidential ticket with their political cash. President Donald Trump’s campaign has received $51.6 million from Texans, while former Vice President Joe Biden’s campaign has taken in $36.1 million. Both parties’ nominees have received far more from Texans compared to last cycle. In 2016, Hillary Clinton received $21.8 million from Texans, while Trump raised just $13.7 million.
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Lobbying spending stagnated in Q3 as stimulus deal faltered
Lobbying spending remained flat in the third quarter of 2020 as lawmakers failed to come to an agreement on another stimulus package to address devastating economic damage caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. From July through September, federal lobbying spending totaled $832 million, down slightly from the $856 million spent during the same period last year. That’s according to OpenSecrets’ lobbying section, which tracks efforts to influence Congress and the federal government.
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Trump facing unprecedented cash
deficit entering final stretch of 2020
President Donald Trump has almost three times as much money left to spend this year than he did this late in the campaign in 2016. Yet the incumbent still has less reported in the bank than Democratic nominee Joe Biden, who has the largest cash on hand advantage in recent history.
Entering the final stretch of the 2020 election, Biden has over three and a half times as much as Trump: $162.1 million compared to $43.6 million. Proportionately, Biden’s cash advantage resembles that of Hillary Clinton four years ago. She had nearly four times as much left to spend than the president-to-be in mid-October. Since 2000, no Republican presidential candidate has gone into the last two weeks of the election with a cash on hand advantage, and Trump’s deficit is significantly small compared to other Republican candidates in the last two decades.
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OpenSecrets in the News
See our media citations from outlets around the nation this week:
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4 star rating for 8 consecutive years |
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