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All data through September 2015

Money & Politics

A Visualization of Campaign Contributions for the 2016 Presidential Election

Laura Brooks & Chase Conley

A Historic Election

The 2016 election is on track to be the most funded presidential election in history.

When compared to the 2012 election...
...the difference is staggering.

Campaigns have already received nearly double the funds raised at this point in the 2012 campaign. Candidates are on track to collectively raise well over $1 billion by election day.

Let's take a look at where this money is
going ...

Donation Inequality

Even with so much money in this election, the vast majority has gone to only a few candidates.
In fact, Hillary Clinton's campaign received more money from individual donors through the end of September 2015 than the bottom 16 candidates ...
... combined.
Even when you add in contributions from other sources ...
... like the candidates' personal contributions
(mostly from Donald Trump) ...
... and money from PACs ...
Wondering why these numbers are so small?
... Clinton still has significantly more than all of the other candidates.

But where does this disparity come from?
Let's take a look at contributions by party.
When the scale is adjusted to make room ...
... and the candidates' funds are added up by party ...
... more money has actually gone to Republicans than Democrats. With so many Republican candidates in the race, and no clear front runner, the money in their party is spread comparatively thin.

All of this money has to come from somewhere. Let's take a look at who the contributors are.






Who's Giving the Most?

When donors are grouped by their employment status, it's easier to see who supports the candidates.

A note about FEC reporting requirements
Across all candidates, most contributors are employed while a still significant portion are retired. Few contributors are unemployed.
A very small percent of contributors to Republican candidates are unemployed ...
... whereas this group makes up a higher percentage of the contributors to Democratic candidates.
Bernie Sanders has by far the highest percent of unemployed contributors.
Hover over lines in the chart to see each candidate's breakdown.

You can also click and drag on an axis to highlight lines in a specified range. Click the axis once to undo selection.
Now that we've seen who the donors are, let's take a look at what each contribution looks like.






Donations of All Sizes

Candidates' funding comes from donations both big and small.
Bernie Sanders has collected the majority of his funds through small contributions ...
... while two candidates who share last names with former presidents have received most of their funding from donations over $2,000,

including Hillary Clinton ...
... and Jeb Bush.
Hover over lines in the chart to explore the breakdown of each candidate.







How Important is Campaign Finance?

Where candidates get their money says a lot about their campaigns. It shows who their supporters are and in many ways reflects the nature of their policies. Political donations give candidates the power to improve their visibility and spread their message. At the same time, a lack of funding can severely limit their political power. As money continues to pour into presidential campaigns, power dynamics may shift. But we can be sure that no matter where the money goes, its effects will not go unnoticed.





More Information

Data Source: FEC Disclosure Reports
About SuperPacs: ABC News
More Campaign Finance Data: Open Secrets