Top Occupations in Maryland by Political Donations

See which occupations donate the most in Maryland. 100 occupations, $68.4M in donations from Maryland.

The occupational breakdown of political donors in Maryland reflects the state's economic makeup. This ranking shows which professions contribute the most to federal campaigns from within Maryland, 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.

#OccupationMaryland TotalNational Total
1ATTORNEY$16.5M$404.2M
2CONSULTANT$8.5M$134.6M
3LAWYER$3.6M$85.7M
4REAL ESTATE$3.0M$91.1M
5PARTNER$2.6M$91.1M
6GOVERNMENT RELATIONS$2.5M$11.2M
7LOBBYIST$2.3M$13.5M
8PROFESSOR$2.3M$64.2M
9PRINCIPAL$1.3M$33.9M
10RESEARCHER$1.2M$11.7M
11DIRECTOR$1.2M$57.8M
12BUSINESS OWNER$1.1M$38.3M
13SCIENTIST$1.0M$17.7M
14REAL ESTATE BROKER$993K$19.8M
15MANAGING DIRECTOR$864K$133.8M
16SOFTWARE ENGINEER$841K$34.6M
17GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS$819K$5.9M
18ECONOMIST$793K$5.5M
19PRESIDENT & CEO$714K$20.9M
20IT CONSULTANT$600K$1.8M
21SELF EMPLOYED$582K$24.5M
22THERAPIST$551K$6.5M
23REAL ESTATE DEVELOPER$527K$20.7M
24ANALYST$527K$12.9M
25EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR$502K$15.1M
26COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE$346K$3.1M
27BUSINESS EXECUTIVE$345K$5.5M
28INVESTMENTS$342K$192.4M
29CONSULTING$336K$6.0M
30VICE CHAIRMAN$320K$6.7M
31NON-PROFIT DIRECTOR$316K$435K
32SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT$313K$7.0M
33CONGRESSMAN$301K$616K
34EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT$300K$5.9M
35SELF$296K$11.9M
36FINANCE PROFESSIONAL$296K$616K
37ADMINISTRATOR$285K$8.8M
38PRESIDENT AND CEO$266K$7.7M
39SOCIAL WORKER$253K$6.2M
40HOTEL MANAGER$251K$375K
41PROGRAM MANAGER$246K$3.9M
42LIBRARIAN$244K$3.3M
43PHYSICIST$242K$2.5M
44EDUCATOR$242K$10.0M
45CANDIDATE$235K$6.4M
46PROJECT MANAGER$228K$7.2M
47CHAIR$211K$21.9M
48FILMMAKER$200K$9.2M
49NOT-EMPLOYED$200K$8.1M
50INVESTMENT PROFESSIONAL$198K$1.1M
51REPRESENTATIVE$176K$658K
52ASSOCIATION EXECUTIVE$171K$521K
53WEB DEVELOPER$165K$963K
54COMMUNICATIONS$162K$2.8M
55VETERINARIAN$161K$5.5M
56COMPOSER$160K$1.1M
57SENIOR PARTNER$160K$2.2M
58EVP$159K$3.3M
59SENIOR POLICY ADVISOR$156K$2.4M
60PRIVATE EQUITY$155K$8.5M
61VP SALES$153K$742K
62NURSE$150K$4.7M
63EDUCATION$147K$2.7M
64MORTGAGE BANKER$145K$1.3M
65SENIOR ADVISOR$142K$9.4M
66POLICY ANALYST$142K$1.5M
67MUSICIAN$137K$7.8M
68LAW PROFESSOR$137K$2.2M
69EDITOR$134K$5.2M
70CO-CEO$131K$9.6M
71GENERAL COUNSEL$131K$3.2M
72PSYCHIATRIST$125K$3.1M
73ATTORNEY/LOBBYIST$123K$364K
74MAYOR$119K$1.1M
75INVESTMENT ADVISOR$117K$7.7M
76IT SPECIALIST$115K$1.0M
77POLITICAL CONSULTANT$115K$1.2M
78PASTOR$114K$2.0M
79MEDICAL PHYSICIST$114K$365K
80HYDROGEOLOGIST$112K$243K
81COLLEGE PROFESSOR$111K$1.5M
82GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS CONSULTANT$111K$535K
83CHIEF OF STAFF$111K$2.0M
84RESEARCH$108K$2.0M
85MENTAL HEALTH THERAPIST$107K$429K
86RESEARCH SCIENTIST$107K$2.1M
87UNEMPLOYED$106K$5.4M
88GOVERNMENT RELATIONS CONSULTANT$104K$684K
89STATISTICIAN$102K$1.7M
90ENGINEERING MANAGER$99K$2.2M
91LEGAL$97K$2.1M
92PROGRAM DIRECTOR$96K$1.2M
93CEO & FOUNDER$95K$3.1M
94ADJUNCT PROFESSOR$93K$1.2M
95HEALTH CARE$92K$1.7M
96POLICY ADVISOR$91K$783K
97PROFESSOR EMERITUS$89K$673K
98TUTOR$85K$1.1M
99MECHANICAL ENGINEER$84K$931K
100STRATEGIST$84K$972K

Frequently Asked Questions

What occupations donate the most in Maryland?

The top political donors by occupation in Maryland typically include retirees, attorneys, executives, and physicians. Across 100 tracked occupations, Maryland residents have contributed $68.4M to federal campaigns.

Does Maryland'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 Maryland 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 Maryland Data

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