The U.S. presidential election has always been associated with 'money'. As the election countdown begins, this year's presidential election is expected to become the most expensive in U.S. history. Bloomberg reported on November 1 that 11,000 political groups spent $14,700,000,000 for the 2024 U.S. election campaign, yes, $14.7 billion.
The article starts by pointing out that the American political system relies on money, and a large amount of it. Since there are no limits on the funding for U.S. presidential and congressional elections, as the struggle between the Democratic and Republican parties intensifies, campaign content such as advertisements, text messages, and emails flood the voters.
$14.7 billion has been allocated for massive television advertisements, fundraising activities, and a series of door-to-door campaigning efforts. According to the U.S. donation database Opensecrets, this amount is expected to account for about 92% of the total spending for the entire 2024 election cycle.
According to documents from the U.S. Federal Election Commission, over 11,000 political groups have invested funds in the 2024 election cycle, including super-rich individuals like Elon Musk.
In addition, this year's U.S. election has entered a new phase where celebrities and prominent figures personally engage in fundraising and campaigning.
On October 19, at an event in Pennsylvania to rally support for Trump's campaign, American tech entrepreneur Elon Musk handed a $1 million check to a member of the audience. Previously, Musk launched an online petition supporting the U.S. Constitution and announced that on each day leading up to the U.S. election on November 5, he would give $1 million to a petition signer. A Reuters article stated, 'This money is the latest example of Musk using his vast wealth to influence the fierce battle between Trump and Harris.'
Harris also has 'big donors' backing her. (New York Times) reported on October 22 that Bill Gates, the founder of Microsoft and one of the world's wealthiest individuals, donated $50 million to Harris after decades of not participating in politics.
(Forbes) magazine statistics show that Harris received support from about 80 billionaires, while Trump received help from about 50 billionaires.
According to predictions from the U.S. advertising tracking company AdImpact, the 2024 U.S. presidential election will be the most expensive one ever.
