CHART OF THE WEEK: 24 states have asked Congress to propose a constitutional amendment restoring authority to limit election spending. SCOTUS decisions including Citizens United enabled unlimited outside spending. Oklahoma is the latest, per American Promise.
Our latest: National parties spent heavily on direct mail in 2024. DNC & RNC each reported $43M+ on printing and mailing; House and Senate party arms spent $18M+ each. Experts say mail spending will remain high during the 2026 election.
www.opensecrets.org/news/2026/03...
Last week @anthropic.com gave up a $200M Pentagon contract rather than cede on AI guardrails. It also gave $20M to Public First, which gave the money to super PACs, which in turn spent $2.8M in early primaries.
More on the push to influence midterms: www.opensecrets.org/news/2026/03...
Imagine it's 2028.
How far would your political donation actually go? 💵
Our new interactive quiz shows you how your dollars stack up agains the biggest donors.
Take the quiz: www.opensecrets.org/news/2026/02...
OpenSecrets in the News
This week, journalists cited OpenSecrets data and analysis in coverage of campaign finance, lobbying, and political influence.
Check out the stories below from @nytimes.com @notus.com @latimes.com @thewrap.com
Bar chart showing the 10 members of Congress who made the most stock transactions in 2025. Rep. Ro Khanna made the most (4,284).
CHART OF THE WEEK
At the #StateOfTheUnion, President Trump backed a bill to ban lawmakers and their families from buying stocks. Another bill would bar them from owning stocks at all.
Some members reported tens of millions in trade value in 2025.
Chart:
Largely a niche topic just years ago, AI mentions in lobbying disclosure reports have gone ⬆️nearly 500% btwn 2020 & 2025.
Much has come from the defense industry, as it advocates for implementation of new military tech.
Read more to follow the $: www.opensecrets.org/news/2026/02...
This week, journalists cited OpenSecrets data and analysis in coverage of lobbying, campaign finance and political influence. We follow the money so the public can better understand how it shapes elections and public policy.
@cnn.com @apnews.com @axios.com @notus.com @theintercept.com
CHART OF THE WEEK: Year-end filings show state Rep. @jamestalarico.bsky.social and Sen. John Cornyn lead the TX SEN field in fundraising.
Talarico’s name recently made national headlines when @colbertlateshow.bsky.social host Stephen Colbert said CBS barred him from airing a segment with Talarico.
Nexstar Media Group spent $3.2M lobbying the FCC in 2025, 10x its annual spend from 2018-2023.
Sinclair Broadcast Group 4x'd its federal lobbying.
Both are pushing to loosen national TV ownership caps as the media landscape consolidates.
Link below:
www.opensecrets.org/news/2026/02...
How much do you know about the money funding the guns debate? OpenSecrets analyzed campaign contributions and lobbying spending on both sides of the issue.
Take our quiz to test your knowledge. www.opensecrets.org/news/2026/01...
Valentine’s Day brings cards and candy, but even familiar brands lobby Washington.
OpenSecrets data show Hallmark Cards has reported hundreds of thousands of dollars in federal lobbying activity.
🔗 Learn more
www.opensecrets.org/federal-lobb...
This week, journalists cited OpenSecrets data and analysis in coverage of campaign finance, lobbying and corporate political spending.
We follow the money so the public can better understand how it shapes elections and public policy.
OpenSecrets and @campaignlegal.org won a federal court ruling requiring the FEC to act on transparency rules for party megadonor accounts.
🔗Read more here: www.opensecrets.org/news/2026/02...
OpenSecrets ranked 15th nationwide (up from 18th) among nonprofit news sites in a new @niemanlab.org report analyzing Q4 2025 audience trends. The ranking reflects growing interest in nonpartisan, data-driven reporting on money in politics.
🔗Read more
www.opensecrets.org/news/2026/02...
Just five firms received about $2.1 billion in political ad-buying payments during the 2024 election cycle. OpenSecrets looks at how that concentration of spending could shape the 2026 midterms.
🔗 Read more
www.opensecrets.org/news/2026/02...
On @ms.now, @weeknightmsnow.bsky.social co-host @michaelsteele.bsky.social cited our data while discussing criticism of the Trump administration from GOP megadonor Ken Griffin. “Is the public interest being served?” he said, calling for renewed focus on ethics in public service.
Watch:
Super Bowl LX is more than beer, wings, and commercials. New OpenSecrets reporting shows how major companies and industries tied to the game are also among the biggest spenders on lobbying and campaign contributions.
🔗 Read our analysis. www.opensecrets.org/news/2026/02...
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was the top fundraiser in the House last year.
Sen. Jon Ossoff was the top fundraiser among Senate candidates in 2025.
Democrats hold a fundraising edge in key Senate races, while Republicans lead in many competitive House contests. With narrow margins in both chambers, early money could shape who controls Congress after 2026.
🔗 Read more
www.opensecrets.org/news/2026/02...
OpenSecrets in the News: Last week, journalists cited our data and analysis in coverage of campaign finance, lobbying, and political influence.
We follow the money so you can better understand how it shapes politics and policy.
@axios.com @cbsnews.com @rollcall.com @theguardian.com @apnews.com
How much do you know about the money funding the guns debate?
OpenSecrets analyzed campaign contributions and lobbying spending on both sides of the issue. Take our quiz to test your knowledge.
🔗 www.opensecrets.org/news/2026/01...
50 years ago today, the Supreme Court decided Buckley v. Valeo, helping establish the status quo for campaign finance by treating independent political spending as protected speech. Polling by American Promise looks at Americans' attitudes toward money in politics on the anniversary.
New OpenSecrets analysis:
Lobbying spending surpassed $5B in 2025, the highest total on record.
Business and health care groups led the surge as lobbying activity increased during the first year of President Donald Trump’s second term.
🔗 Read more: www.opensecrets.org/news/2026/01...
Last week, journalists cited our work in coverage of campaign finance, lobbying, and political influence ahead of the midterms.
We follow the money so you can understand how it shapes policy and elections.
@latimes.com @politico.com @gizmodo.com @washingtonexaminer.bsky.social @pressherald.com
New from OpenSecrets:
Countries invited to President Trump’s “Board of Peace for Gaza” represented a good chunk of foreign lobbying spending in the US in 2024 and an even larger share in 2025 to date.
Our analysis breaks down who lobbied, how much was spent, and who stayed on the sidelines.
16 years ago today, the Supreme Court decided Citizens United v. FEC.
Since then super PACs have become central to campaigning & more political money is flowing through groups that do not disclose donors.
Are you dark money savvy? Take our quiz to find out. www.opensecrets.org/news/2025/12...
Political ad spending in the 2026 midterms is projected to hit a record $10.8 billion, according to AdImpact, more than 20% higher than 2022. Higher ad costs, earlier campaign spending, & greater use of connected TV are driving the increase.
Read more: www.opensecrets.org/news/2026/01...
OpenSecrets in the News: This week, journalists cited OpenSecrets data and analysis in coverage of campaign finance, political spending, and the 2026 midterms.
We #followthemoney so the public can better understand how it shapes politics.
@washingtonpost.com @apnews.com @adn.com @sludge.bsky.social
