Top Occupations in Virginia by Political Donations

See which occupations donate the most in Virginia. 100 occupations, $120.9M in donations from Virginia.

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

#OccupationVirginia TotalNational Total
1ATTORNEY$16.3M$404.2M
2CONSULTANT$15.4M$134.6M
3CEO$8.6M$842.9M
4PRESIDENT$6.4M$305.1M
5EXECUTIVE$5.3M$282.8M
6MANAGER$4.5M$70.3M
7LAWYER$4.4M$85.7M
8PARTNER$3.4M$91.1M
9PRINCIPAL$3.2M$33.9M
10LOBBYIST$3.1M$13.5M
11GOVERNMENT RELATIONS$2.6M$11.2M
12VICE PRESIDENT$1.9M$26.8M
13ENGINEER$1.9M$69.4M
14DEVELOPER$1.9M$12.9M
15PROFESSOR$1.7M$64.2M
16ENTREPRENEUR$1.7M$87.2M
17GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS$1.6M$5.9M
18DIRECTOR$1.4M$57.8M
19PRESIDENT & CEO$1.4M$20.9M
20MANAGING DIRECTOR$1.2M$133.8M
21REALTOR$1.2M$16.6M
22CANDIDATE$1.2M$6.4M
23PHILANTHROPIST$1.2M$59.2M
24ADVISOR$1.1M$9.1M
25MUSICIAN$1.0M$7.8M
26AUTO DEALER$1.0M$7.9M
27CONSTRUCTION$854K$10.8M
28FARMER$844K$31.0M
29SELF EMPLOYED$833K$24.5M
30ANALYST$756K$12.9M
31SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT$752K$7.0M
32SOFTWARE ENGINEER$747K$34.6M
33TEACHER$732K$28.4M
34ECONOMIST$691K$5.5M
35CHAIRMAN AND CEO$678K$19.8M
36CONSULTING$674K$6.0M
37BUILDER$666K$4.5M
38VP$649K$9.9M
39MANAGING PARTNER$633K$27.9M
40EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR$581K$15.1M
41CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER$539K$74.4M
42SVP$537K$4.4M
43RETAIL$503K$5.7M
44SENIOR POLICY ADVISOR$499K$2.4M
45ACCOUNTANT$482K$14.2M
46PUBLIC AFFAIRS$466K$2.3M
47VP-PROGRAM MANAGEMENT EXECUTIVE (PROGR$459K$459K
48PRESIDENT AND CEO$437K$7.7M
49CONTRACTOR$421K$14.0M
50AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER$405K$5.8M
51SELF$395K$11.9M
52MANAGEMENT$381K$11.8M
53CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER$360K$3.6M
54DENTIST$352K$10.0M
55EVP$341K$3.3M
56SENIOR ADVISOR$331K$9.4M
57PROGRAM MANAGER$315K$3.9M
58PILOT$306K$6.9M
59ARCHITECT$305K$16.2M
60PUBLIC POLICY$304K$1.8M
61VP-ENGINEERING MULTI-SKILL EXECUTIVE ($301K$301K
62DIR-ENGINEERING MULTI-SKILL EXECUTIVE$297K$297K
63BUSINESSMAN$293K$8.9M
64COO$292K$11.8M
65SOFTWARE DEVELOPER$272K$6.5M
66EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT$268K$5.9M
67IT$268K$3.9M
68SOFTWARE EXECUTIVE$265K$2.2M
69SENIOR DIRECTOR$256K$2.2M
70ASSOCIATE$251K$2.6M
71DIRECTOR PROGRAMS 2$250K$250K
72DIR-GOVERNMENT RELATIONS EXECUTIVE (PU$230K$230K
73COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE$223K$3.1M
74VETERINARIAN$223K$5.5M
75SENIOR VP$221K$944K
76GENERAL COUNSEL$219K$3.2M
77GOVERNMENT RELATIONS CONSULTANT$218K$684K
78DIR-PROGRAM MANAGEMENT EXECUTIVE (PROG$215K$215K
79RESEARCHER$210K$11.7M
80MANAGEMENT CONSULTANT$207K$3.4M
81BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT$203K$2.5M
82EXEC$198K$6.1M
83VP PROGRAM MANAGEMENT$187K$236K
84POLICY DIRECTOR$185K$1.3M
85INVESTMENT ADVISOR$180K$7.7M
86COMMUNICATIONS$177K$2.8M
87DIRECTOR PROGRAMS 1$175K$175K
88BUSINESS EXECUTIVE$173K$5.5M
89SHAREHOLDER$165K$1.8M
90AIRLINE PILOT$165K$3.9M
91CAR DEALER$162K$2.3M
92NURSE$159K$4.7M
93DIR-MARKETING & SALES REP EXECUTIVE (M$157K$157K
94PARTNER/PRINCIPAL$156K$2.8M
95STUDENT$154K$6.1M
96CHIEF TECHNOLOGY OFFICER$151K$902K
97REAL ESTATE DEVELOPMENT$150K$5.1M
98CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER$150K$2.6M
99REAL ESTATE AGENT$149K$2.5M
100PROFESSIONAL$146K$826K

Frequently Asked Questions

What occupations donate the most in Virginia?

The top political donors by occupation in Virginia typically include retirees, attorneys, executives, and physicians. Across 100 tracked occupations, Virginia residents have contributed $120.9M to federal campaigns.

Does Virginia'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 Virginia 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 Virginia Data

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