ABSTRACT
Q: How much is spent on political campaigns in the United States? A: The 2000 U.S. Presidential election, the most expensive to that date,
cost $3 billion in combined expenses for all candidates, parties, and interest groups (Johnston, 2001). In the 2008 Democratic primary campaign, $137 million was spent on TV ads alone, up from $51 million in 2004 (“Numbers,” 2008b). According to the Center for Responsive Politics in Washington, 72% of all the political ad spending during the 2010 elections in the U.S. would have been prohibited before the 2010 Citizens United Supreme Court ruling removed most limits on contributions to political action committees (“Harper’s Index,” 2012).
