Neither Vice President Harris nor former President Trump had voluntarily revealed their top campaign finance figures as of Election Day, upending a tradition of bipartisanship dating back to 2000.
Campaigns are not legally required to disclose their top fundraisers, often referred to as “bundlers,” unless they are active registered federal lobbyists. But since President George W. Bush revealed the name of a “pioneer” who raised at least $100,000 in his 2000 campaign, at least one person has been identified every cycle, including Presidents Biden and Harris in 2020. of presidential candidates reveal their funders.
“During this critical election, when so many voters are concerned about democracy and democratic norms, it is disappointing to see these guardrails of good government fall by the wayside,” Issue One said. Research Director Michael Becker said.
Presidential campaign contributions are limited to $3,300 per race, but bundlers mobilize their networks to raise hundreds of thousands or even millions of dollars in campaign contributions.
Bundlers who reach certain fundraising tiers are known to unlock perks such as invitations to events with candidates and receive coveted appointments. For example, President Obama said: 31 Bundler He served as ambassador during his second term, according to a 2017 investigation by the Center for Public Integrity.
“Elite fundraisers have access to politicians that ordinary voters can only dream of. By raising large sums of money, they seek to become the most powerful people in the world. You're winning someone's ear,” Becker said.
Issue One comes ahead of several letters signed by good governance organizations during this election cycle asking presidential candidates to disclose their biggest fundraisers.
Hill has repeatedly asked the Trump and Harris campaigns if and when they plan to release Bundler publicly.
Neither camp responded to requests for comment on this or other articles.
The Trump campaign did not disclose bundling companies in 2016 and 2020, but the magazine says it has at least seven bundlers this season, ranging from the $15,000 “Trump Force” to the $1 million “Ultra MAGA.” There is a bundling layer. Reported by Puck News In January.
When Biden was running for re-election, the Biden-Harris campaign had at least four levels of bundlers that could qualify for “sweeteners” such as invitations to events with the president and vice president. I was doing it. NBC News reported Last September.
Neither Biden nor Harris have provided details on who has raised the most money this election cycle. But during the 2020 campaign, Biden released the names of more than 800 individuals and couples who raised at least $100,000 for his campaign. a few days before the electionand in December 2019 had revealed more than 230 people who had raised at least $25,000.
The campaign's failure to disclose Bundler this cycle is “unfortunate,” but “much less significant” than when President Bush first disclosed Bundler in 2000, said co-founder Michael of the University at Albany.・Professor Emeritus Marvin said. Campaign Finance Institute.
At the time, Malvin said, bundling was “the main way wealthy donors used their donations to gain the appreciation of candidates.”
“After Citizens United, this The situation has fundamentally changed.”
Previously, candidates could only get support from their own committees or political parties, but “now they can benefit from contributions to super PACs that act as candidates' exclusives,” Malvin added. Ta.
Billionaire Elon Musk has spent his fortune and poured millions of dollars into Trump's favor in this election. $118.6 million to his America PAC. The super PAC spent $84.2 million OpenSecret, a nonprofit that tracks political money and signed the first letter, says $56.8 million went to support Trump and attack Harris.
Mr. Trump has outsourced much of his ground campaign to the America PAC, and Mr. Musk has joined the president in campaigning, working particularly hard in Pennsylvania.
Harris is also getting a boost. $515.7 million OpenSecrets said it included outside spending by Future Forward USA, a hybrid PAC that only partially discloses its donors.
Taylor Giorno previously worked at OpenSecrets.
