By Bailey Chenevert
The past few years in politics have shown a growing force of politicians that win elections without accepting a dime of corporate PAC money. A big part of the appeal is that this refusal signals to voters which politicians won’t be influenced by big businesses and their special interests. Corporate political-action committees (PACs) are funded by a company’s employees and are affiliated with its title or brand. The idea is that the more donations affiliated with a business, the more attention a politician might pay to protecting that business’ interests.
Despite the growing scrutiny of corporate influence in politics, many politicians still fund their campaigns with help from corporate donations. As of February 2020, corporate PACs accounted for 73% of PAC donations to federal candidates and party committees. The upcoming November election proves to be no exception to the financing power of big businesses as congressional candidates from both parties receive millions of business PAC dollars. Here is an overview of the congressional candidates receiving the most of it.
1. Mitch McConnell – $3,812,459
Position and Party: Senate (KY), Republican
PAC Contributions From: United Parcel Service, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, Eli Lilly & Co., Comcast, FedEx
2. Thom Tillis – $3,621,710
Position and Party: Senate (NC), Republican
PAC Contributions From: Goldman Sachs, British American Tobacco, Altria Group, Comcast, Pfizer
3. Cory Gardner – $3,377,103
Position and Party: Senate (CO), Republican
PAC Contributions From: Amazon, Microsoft, Comcast, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, DISH Network
4. John Cornyn – $3,264,948
Position and Party: Senate (TX), Republican
PAC Contributions From: Microsoft, AT&T, Dell Technologies, United Airlines, Blue Cross/Blue Shield
5. Mark Warner – $2,565,924
Position and Party: Senate (VA), Democrat
PAC Contributions From: Goldman Sachs, Amazon, JP Morgan, CVS Health, Comcast
6. Gary Peters – $2,516,728
Position and Party: Senate (MI), Democrat
PAC Contributions From: University of Michigan, Goldman Sachs, Ford Motor, General Motors, Blue Cross/Blue Shield
7. Susan Collins – $2,413,950
Position and Party: Senate (ME), Republican
PAC Contributions From: Blue Cross/Blue Shield, Blackstone Group, FedEx, Honeywell International, General Dynamics
8. Stephen Daines – $2,362,743
Position and Party: Senate (MT), Republican
PAC Contributions From: Charter Communications, New York Life Insurance, Microsoft, Home Depot, Honeywell International
9. David Perdue – $2,272,450
Position and Party: Senate (GA), Republican
PAC Contributions From: Home Depot, Cox, Delta Airlines, AFLAC, Goldman Sachs
10. Bill Cassidy – $2,169,789
Position and Party: Senate (LA), Republican
PAC Contributions From: Ochsner Health Systems, B&G Food Enterprises, Entergy, UnitedHealth Group
11. Richard Neal – $2,141,049
Position and Party: House (MA), Democrat
PAC Contributions From: Blue Cross/Blue Shield, FedEx, Comcast, Home Depot, Google
12. Kevin McCarthy – $2,017,749
Position and Party: House (CA), Republican
PAC Contributions From: Comcast, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, McDonald’s, Amazon
13. Steny Hoyer – $2,011,490
Position and Party: House (MD), Democrat
PAC Contributions From: Alphabet, Delta Airlines, Coca-Cola, Walmart, General Electric
14. Joni Ernst – $1,930,161
Position and Party: Senate (IA), Republican
PAC Contributions From: NASCAR, Berkshire Hathaway, Terra Industries, Poet LLC
15. Tina Smith – $1,815,452
Position and Party: Senate (MN), Democrat
PAC Contributions From: Blue Cross/Blue Shield, US Bancorp, Comcast, Medtronic, Delta Airlines
Bailey Chenevert is a freelance journalist and guest editorial contributor for Cluey Consumer. As a recent 2020 college graduate from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, Bailey supplemented her studies as both a research assistant and a student editor at La Louisiane. Bailey is passionate about impartial reporting on consumerism and the impacts that fashion brands have on our modern world.
