Record High $24 Trillion Election Spending Expected Amid Tight US Midterm Race

U.S. Midterm Election Cost Trends (Green: Federal Elections, Blue: State Elections)

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Byung-hee] The upcoming U.S. midterm elections on the 8th (local time) are expected to see the highest election spending in history. As the midterm election results are predicted to be very close, both the Democratic and Republican parties are pouring substantial funds into securing victory.

The U.S. political finance analysis group OpenSecrets estimated that this year's midterm election spending will exceed $16.7 billion. It is expected that $8.9 billion will be spent on federal elections and $7.8 billion on state elections.

This represents a 21.8% increase compared to the 2018 midterm elections, which had the highest spending to date. Adjusted for inflation, the total election cost in the 2018 midterms was $13.7 billion, with $7.1 billion spent on federal elections and $6.6 billion on state elections.

According to the U.S. Federal Election Commission (FEC), as of the 1st, federal election spending has already surpassed $7.5 billion.

U.S. midterm election spending slightly decreased in 2014 but surged by 47.4% during the 2018 midterms held under former President Donald Trump’s administration.

Although it does not compare to 2018, the reason for the recent surge in election spending is the expectation of a very close race. The Republican Party is expected to regain the majority in the House of Representatives, but a tight contest is anticipated in the Senate. Currently, the seat count is close, with Democrats holding 220 seats and Republicans 212 in the House. In the Senate, including two independent senators leaning Democratic, both parties hold 50 seats each.

The areas receiving the most funding are also the closely contested Senate battlegrounds. The Pennsylvania Senate race has received the largest amount so far, with 3.4328 trillion won invested. Following Pennsylvania are Georgia, Arizona, Ohio, Wisconsin, and Nevada in order.

In federal election contributions, the Democratic Party raised more funds than the Republican Party. However, the Republican Party’s spending has been confirmed to be higher.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.