Chapter 13 – State Elections & Campaigning
13.8 The Importance of Campaign Fundraising
Campaign fundraising is the process of collecting money to support a political campaign. It is a central part of elections in Ohio. Candidates need money to pay for advertising, staff, travel, events, and other costs that come with running for office. Fundraising gives candidates the resources to communicate their message, build name recognition, and connect with voters.
Donors are individuals, organizations, or groups who give money to political campaigns. Donations can range from small contributions made online to large checks written by wealthy individuals or special interest groups. Candidates often spend hours calling potential donors in a practice known as “dialing for dollars.”
Some campaigns rely on bundlers—well-connected supporters who gather donations from many people in their networks and deliver them to the campaign as a group. Bundling allows campaigns to receive large sums of money while staying within individual contribution limits.
Campaigns employ fundraisers, whose job is to bring in money and help the campaign meet its financial goals. Fundraisers plan events such as dinners, galas, and rallies, build relationships with donors, and manage online giving platforms.
Small-dollar donors are individuals who give relatively modest amounts of money to political campaigns, often through online platforms. In recent years, campaigns have increasingly relied on these contributions—sometimes called grassroots donations—to show broad support from everyday voters. While each donation may only be $5, $10, or $25, the total can add up quickly when thousands of people contribute. This trend has made campaigns less dependent on large donors and has given more voters a sense of ownership in the political process.
In addition to individual donors, candidates for state office in Ohio also raise money from party organizations and from political action committees (PACs). A PAC is a group formed to raise and spend money on elections. PACs in Ohio often represent business associations, labor unions, or issue-based organizations. They can contribute directly to state candidates, but they must follow contribution limits set by Ohio law.
Another important player in Ohio politics is the use of dark money groups. These are nonprofit organizations, often organized under section 501(c)(4) of the federal tax code, that can spend money on state elections and ballot issues without fully disclosing their donors. Their activity makes it harder for voters to know who is behind certain ads or political efforts.
By understanding how campaign fundraising works, Ohio voters can better recognize the influences behind campaigns. Informed voters are in a stronger position to hold candidates accountable and push for reforms that increase transparency and fairness in the electoral process.
Case Study – House Bill 6 and Dark Money in Ohio
In 2019, the Ohio General Assembly passed House Bill 6, a law that provided a financial bailout for two nuclear power plants owned by FirstEnergy and its affiliates. Later investigations revealed that more than $60 million in dark money had been funneled through a nonprofit group to influence the bill’s passage.
Because dark money groups are not required to disclose their donors, voters could not see who was funding the ads and lobbying efforts in favor of the law. Federal prosecutors later described this scheme as one of the largest bribery and money-laundering scandals in Ohio history.
This case shows how dark money can shape state policy while limiting transparency. It also demonstrates why campaign finance reform and disclosure rules remain major issues in Ohio politics.
