Where Do Political Donors Work?
FEC filings require individual donors contributing more than $200 to disclose their employer. Across 12,134 employers tracked, employees contributed a total of $2.79B to federal campaigns.
These contributions reflect the personal political activity of individual employees, not the official positions or spending of the companies themselves.
Top 15 Employers by Employee Political Giving
| Rank | Employer | Total Given | Donors | Avg. Donation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Space Exploration Technologies Corp. | $209.0M | 220 | $950K |
| 2 | Uline | $135.4M | 18 | $7.5M |
| 3 | Sig | $86.2M | 9 | $9.6M |
| 4 | Asana | $51.0M | 23 | $2.2M |
| 5 | Emc | $44.7M | 18 | $2.5M |
| 6 | Blackstone | $29.8M | 240 | $124K |
| 7 | Nea | $28.3M | 29 | $975K |
| 8 | Crownquest Operating | $24.1M | 5 | $4.8M |
| 9 | Greylock | $23.7M | 7 | $3.4M |
| 10 | Stephens Inc. | $22.9M | 33 | $693K |
| 11 | Entrepreneur | $21.1M | 2,177 | $10K |
| 12 | Corporation | $20.1M | 6 | $3.3M |
| 13 | Lone Pine Capital | $19.4M | 7 | $2.8M |
| 14 | The Duchossois Group | $18.0M | 7 | $2.6M |
| 15 | $16.3M | 1,942 | $8K |
Industry Patterns
The top employers list is dominated by organizations in sectors with high-income professionals: technology companies, financial institutions, law firms, and universities. These sectors tend to have employees with both the discretionary income and professional motivation to engage in political giving.
Methodology
Employer data is self-reported by donors on their FEC filings. Totals reflect aggregate individual contributions per employer for the 2024 cycle. Self-employed individuals, retirees, and unemployed donors are excluded from this analysis.