DON'T TELL BERNIE

Billionaire Bucks Flood Campaign Coffers at Historic Levels

A new analysis by the New York Times reveals the very wealthiest Americans made nearly 20% of all federal contributions in 2024.

Big money is speaking louder than ever in American politics. Since the Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United decision enabled corporations and outside groups to spend limitlessly towards candidates and campaigns, money from billionaires rose from near zero to 19% percent of federal campaign contributions in 2024, according to a new analysis by the New York Times. The families of the billionaires gave an average of $10 million each, which equals about what 100,000 average political donors typically give. Mounds of money from the top are also getting more lopsided towards Republicans, who earned five dollars for every one dollar a Democrat candidate or committee received from a billionaire and their family in 2024. And those dollars are often coupled with influence. The Trump administration has given roles to more than a dozen billionaires, according to the Times. And that’s just on the federal level. Billionaire dollars are reaching state and local races, despite polls showing that about three-quarters of Americans prefer limits on individual spending on political campaigns. The New York Times reported that Democratic governor of Illinois J.B. Pritzker spent $152 million of his own money on his own election. The ultra-rich are also shelling out big for state ballot measures, with a former tech executive and his wife spending $2.5 million to support a carbon cap in Washington state, and a hedge fund manager in Florida throwing down $12 million to shoot down a push to legalize marijuana.