At first glance, it may not appear that standing on a stage telling people why they should vote for you would be costly. Presidential elections are an expensive venture. However, the costs associated with getting a candidate’s name out there nationwide for all to become familiar with can be quite expensive.
The staff, airfare, and advertising, including radio and TV ads, can cause a campaign’s costs to skyrocket rapidly. Nearly every presidential election has cost more than the ones before it, but the pace of spending has accelerated in the 21st century.
For the 2020 US Presidential Campaign, President Donald Trump and Joe Biden spent a combined $1.3 billion.
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Understanding the Growth in Campaign Spending
Even when adjusted for inflation—or rising prices—the amount of money it takes to become president has increased more than 250-fold from Abraham Lincoln to Donald Trump.
Between 2000 and 2012, the amount spent by the winning candidate’s campaign nearly quadrupled, and Political Action Committee (PAC) spending has similarly exploded.
National party spending has increased more reasonably, though the Republican National Committee (RNC) and Democratic National Committee (DNC) still spend much more to elect candidates than they did even 15 years ago.
The 2020 Election
Donald Trump announced his reelection bid as soon as he took office four years ago and has raised a total of $595.6 million.19 This amount includes donations to his official campaign committee and outside groups like single-candidate super PACs and hybrid PACs or Carey Committees. Top donors include America First Action and Preserve America PAC.
The $595.6 million raised fell short of Trump’s targeted $1 billion as the total he would like to raise for his campaign.20 Trump used most of the money raised on his election campaign, spending $574.9 million.
Joe Biden, meanwhile, raised significantly more money than Trump with $937.7 million of campaign funds.21 This amount also includes donations to his official campaign committee and outside groups like single-candidate super PACs and hybrid PACs. Top donors include Priorities USA Action and Future Forward USA.
Biden spent significantly more on his campaign than Trump did at $775.629 million. However, he still had $162 million cash on hand by Election Day.
