Top Occupations in District of Columbia by Political Donations

See which occupations donate the most in District of Columbia. 100 occupations, $90.9M in donations from District of Columbia.

The occupational breakdown of political donors in District of Columbia reflects the state's economic makeup. This ranking shows which professions contribute the most to federal campaigns from within District of Columbia, with both state-level and national totals provided for comparison. The mix of top occupations can differ substantially from one state to another based on local industries and workforce composition.

#OccupationDistrict of Columbia TotalNational Total
1ATTORNEY$21.1M$404.2M
2CONSULTANT$16.7M$134.6M
3PARTNER$6.4M$91.1M
4LOBBYIST$5.2M$13.5M
5LAWYER$4.3M$85.7M
6GOVERNMENT RELATIONS$3.3M$11.2M
7PRINCIPAL$2.8M$33.9M
8FINANCE$2.6M$55.7M
9GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS$1.9M$5.9M
10ACTIVIST$1.7M$2.3M
11VICE PRESIDENT$1.6M$26.8M
12DIRECTOR$1.5M$57.8M
13MANAGING PARTNER$1.5M$27.9M
14WRITER$1.1M$38.7M
15SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT$1.1M$7.0M
16EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR$848K$15.1M
17FOUNDING PARTNER$664K$3.7M
18ECONOMIST$647K$5.5M
19ANALYST$617K$12.9M
20SENIOR POLICY ADVISOR$600K$2.4M
21PHOTOGRAPHER$595K$6.5M
22BUSINESSMAN$533K$8.9M
23PUBLIC POLICY$530K$1.8M
24POLICY DIRECTOR$506K$1.3M
25SENATOR$505K$1.9M
26RESEARCHER$480K$11.7M
27SENIOR ADVISOR$380K$9.4M
28VP$372K$9.9M
29PUBLIC AFFAIRS$368K$2.3M
30CONSULTING$323K$6.0M
31CHIEF OF STAFF$319K$2.0M
32SENIOR DIRECTOR$309K$2.2M
33COMMUNICATIONS$285K$2.8M
34MEMBER OF CONGRESS$279K$1.2M
35LIBRARIAN$271K$3.3M
36EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT$267K$5.9M
37ADVISOR$264K$9.1M
38SENIOR MANAGING DIRECTOR$245K$2.7M
39POLICY ADVISOR$245K$783K
40SHAREHOLDER$220K$1.8M
41LAW PROFESSOR$219K$2.2M
42SVP$218K$4.4M
43GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS CONSULTANT$217K$535K
44GENERAL COUNSEL$211K$3.2M
45REAL ESTATE DEVELOPMENT$206K$5.1M
46POLICY CONSULTANT$197K$526K
47COUNSEL$197K$814K
48POLICY ANALYST$185K$1.5M
49FOUNDER AND CEO$184K$4.8M
50EDUCATION$183K$2.7M
51PROPERTY MANAGER$177K$4.5M
52POLITICAL CONSULTANT$167K$1.2M
53FUNDRAISER$165K$2.3M
54MANAGEMENT CONSULTANT$161K$3.4M
55BOARD CHAIR$160K$991K
56INTERIOR DESIGNER$157K$3.5M
57GRANT WRITER$154K$397K
58PUBLIC RELATIONS$150K$2.2M
59SENIOR FELLOW$146K$987K
60ART$135K$421K
61ADVOCATE$134K$594K
62HOUSEWIFE$134K$2.0M
63GOVERNMENT RELATIONS CONSULTANT$128K$684K
64CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER$128K$3.6M
65GOVERNMENT$120K$802K
66PRIVATE EQUITY INVESTOR$120K$1.6M
67SR DIRECTOR ENGINEERING$106K$116K
68VP ENGINEERING$106K$496K
69SMALL BUSINESS OWNER$105K$3.3M
70EDITOR$105K$5.2M
71PROGRAM DIRECTOR$104K$1.2M
72CIVIL SERVANT$103K$754K
73FELLOW$103K$363K
74SENIOR PARTNER$100K$2.2M
75SPEECH LANGUAGE PATHOLOGIST$100K$602K
76VP HUMAN RESOURCES$99K$340K
77SENIOR COUNSEL$97K$876K
78ASSISTANT VICE PRESIDENT$97K$304K
79PROGRAM MANAGER$95K$3.9M
80STAFF$93K$1.1M
81ADJUNCT PROFESSOR$90K$1.2M
82STRATEGIST$90K$972K
83SR DIRECTOR SALES$89K$94K
84COACH$89K$1.6M
85VP GOVERNMENT RELATIONS$88K$273K
86SR DIRECTOR OFFERING MGMT$88K$88K
87EXECUTIVE VP$87K$1.2M
88ENVIRONMENTALIST$87K$263K
89DIPLOMAT$87K$813K
90BOARD OF DIRECTORS$85K$3.3M
91BUSINESS ADVISOR$84K$902K
92OF COUNSEL$82K$322K
93VICE PRESIDENT, GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS$81K$194K
94DIRECTOR ENGINEERING$80K$134K
95FILM MAKER$80K$537K
96SENIOR VP$79K$944K
97SENIOR MANAGER$79K$733K
98POLICY$78K$306K
99CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST$75K$1.3M
100DIRECTOR SALES$74K$123K

Frequently Asked Questions

What occupations donate the most in District of Columbia?

The top political donors by occupation in District of Columbia typically include retirees, attorneys, executives, and physicians. Across 100 tracked occupations, District of Columbia residents have contributed $90.9M to federal campaigns.

Does District of Columbia's occupation mix differ from the national average?

Each state's occupational giving profile reflects its local economy. States with major financial centers see more banker and investor donations, while states with large university systems see more professor and researcher contributions. Compare the District of Columbia and National Total columns to spot these differences.

How are occupation categories determined?

Donors self-report their occupation on FEC contribution forms. We normalize common variations (e.g., "ATTORNEY" and "LAWYER" are combined) to produce cleaner rankings, though some inconsistency remains due to the self-reported nature of the data.

More District of Columbia Data

District of Columbia Overview Top ZIP Codes Top Cities Top Employers