Record high US$15.9 billion spent on US election campaigns

The 2024 US election, which went to the polls on Tuesday (Nov 5), is set to become the most expensive in history, with total contributions reaching US$15.9 billion.
The spending, which includes congressional contests, will surpass the US$15.1 billion spent in 2020 and more than double 2016’s US$6.5 billion, according to nonprofit OpenSecrets.
In the hotly contested presidential race, Vice President Kamala Harris has emerged as the fundraising leader.
Her campaign directly raised over US$1 billion, with 40 per cent coming from small donors, plus an additional US$586 million from supporting political action committees.