Analysis

10 numbers to know from the newest 2020 campaign finance reports


Even as the loss of a quorum prevents the Federal Election Commission (FEC) from performing most of its duties, the agency continues to make the campaign finance reports filed by candidates and groups available on its website.

Here are some of the most critical numbers to know from the latest reports, which were filed by presidential candidates on Thursday.

$1.4 billion: Total amount of money spent by all current and former presidential candidates combined through Jan. 31. President Donald Trump’s campaign alone has spent $150 million. Republicans challenging Trump have combined to spend $2.5 million. And Democratic presidential candidates have combined to spend $1.3 billion.

$380 million: Total spending by presidential candidates in the month of January alone, when President Donald Trump spent $16 million, and the Democratic presidential candidates combined to spend $370 million. In January alone, billionaire Democratic presidential candidates Michael Bloomberg and Tom Steyer respectively spent $220 million and $53 million.

$460 million: Amount of money that billionaire Michael Bloomberg invested into his 2020 Democratic presidential campaigns through Jan. 31. Meanwhile, billionaire Tom Steyer invested $270 million of his own funds in his campaign.

$26 million: The total amount spent in January by Bernie Sanders, the top-spending, non-billionaire Democratic candidate.

$280 million: Amount of money that small-dollar donors giving $200 or less collectively contributed to Democratic presidential candidates through Jan. 31 — including $30 million in January alone.

43%: Portion of the $650 million raised through Jan. 31 by the Democratic presidential candidates not primarily self-funding that came from small-dollar donors giving $200 or less. In January alone, such grassroots donors were responsible for 44% of the $67 million raised by the Democratic candidates who are not primarily self-funding their campaigns.

2: Number of Democratic presidential candidates currently running for whom small-dollar donors giving $200 or less have accounted for more than half of their campaign war chests. Those candidates are Bernie Sanders (55% of $130 million) and Elizabeth Warren (52% of $93 million). 

$88 million: Amount of money that small-dollar donors giving $200 or less collectively contributed to Trump’s campaign through Jan. 31 — about 38% of the $230 million he’s raised.

$22 million: Total amount of money spent in the 2020 Democratic presidential primary by outside groups, such as super PACs and dark money groups. Of this sum, $15 million has been spent by groups supporting or opposing candidates who are still in the race.

$7.4 million: Total amount of money the pro-Joe Biden super PAC Unite the Country has spent on ads since October. This ranks it as the top-spending single-candidate super PAC active in the Democratic presidential primary so far.

Amisa Ratliff contributed to this report.