How does presidential campaign finance work?
Presidential campaigns raise money from individuals, PACs, and party committees under FEC rules. Major candidates typically opt out of public financing to raise and spend unlimited private funds.
Presidential campaign finance is regulated by the Federal Election Commission (FEC) under the Federal Election Campaign Act and subsequent legislation. Individual donors may give a limited amount directly to a candidate's campaign committee per election cycle. These limits are adjusted for inflation periodically.
Super PACs - political action committees that operate independently of campaigns - may raise and spend unlimited amounts from individuals, corporations, and unions, but are prohibited from coordinating directly with campaigns. In practice, super PACs supporting a candidate's message have become essential to modern presidential campaigns.
A federal public financing system exists for presidential campaigns, providing matching funds to candidates who agree to spending limits. Since Barack Obama declined public financing in 2008 and raised far more private money, major-party nominees have routinely opted out of public financing, choosing to raise and spend without the caps.
Donors and expenditures above certain thresholds must be reported to the FEC and are publicly available at fec.gov. This disclosure allows the public and press to see who is funding which candidates and how campaigns are spending their money.
Related questions
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Related explainers
A person becomes an official presidential candidate by filing with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) once they raise or spend more than $5,000, or by making a public declaration of candidacy.
The 2028 presidential campaign effectively starts after the November 2026 midterms, with formal announcements expected through 2027 - historically 12 to 18 months before the first primaries in early 2028. There is no legal start date, and as of July 2026 no major candidate has formally declared.
Presidential nominees are chosen by their party's national convention, based on delegates won in state primaries and caucuses. The person who wins a majority of delegates becomes the official nominee.
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