Campaign finance requirements govern how much money candidates may receive from individuals and organizations, how often they must report those contributions, and how much individuals, organizations, and political entities may contribute to campaigns.
While campaign finance is not the only factor in electoral outcomes, successful fundraising can provide a candidate with advantages during a campaign. Fundraising can also indicate party momentum.
This article lists top fundraisers in the Wisconsin State Senate, overall and by party. It is based on campaign finance reports that officeholders in and candidates for the State Senate submitted to the Wisconsin Ethics Commission. It includes activity between July 1, 2022, and Dec. 31, 2022.
Top fundraisers in the Wisconsin State Senate by party
The top fundraisers in Wisconsin State Senate elections are shown below. Individuals are presented with the office that they were on the ballot for in 2022, if applicable.
In the Democratic Party, the top fundraisers in the most recent semiannual reporting period were:
- Jeff Smith (District 31) – $737,356
- Kristin Alfheim (District 19) – $377,808
- Kelly Westlund (District 25) – $291,285
- Jessica Katzenmeyer (District 5) – $174,042
- Mark Spreitzer (District 15) – $143,092
In the Republican Party, the top fundraisers in the most recent semiannual reporting period were:
- Rachael Cabral-Guevara (District 19) – $567,716
- Rob Hutton (District 5) – $502,004
- David Estenson (District 31) – $449,717
- Romaine Quinn (District 25) – $447,936
- Howard Marklein (District 17) – $316,304
Fundraising totals
Overall, Democratic officeholders and candidates raised $2.1 million in this period. Republican officeholders and candidates raised $3.3 million. Combined, all State Senate fundraisers in the July 1, 2022, through Dec. 31, 2022, filing period raised $5.4 million.
The five largest Democratic fundraisers were responsible for 82 percent of all Democratic State Senate fundraising. The five largest Republican fundraisers were responsible for 70 percent of all Republican State Senate fundraising.
The table below provides additional data from the campaign finance reports from the top 10 fundraisers during this period.
| TOP 10 FUNDRAISERS – WISCONSIN STATE SENATE (July 1, 2022, through Dec. 31, 2022) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Name | Party Affiliation | Raised | Spent |
| Jeff Smith | Democratic Party | $737,356 | $901,154 |
| Rachael Cabral-Guevara | Republican Party | $567,716 | $647,245 |
| Rob Hutton | Republican Party | $502,004 | $534,251 |
| David Estenson | Republican Party | $449,717 | $466,603 |
| Romaine Quinn | Republican Party | $447,936 | $504,066 |
| Kristin Alfheim | Democratic Party | $377,808 | $409,945 |
| Howard Marklein | Republican Party | $316,304 | $541,551 |
| Kelly Westlund | Democratic Party | $291,285 | $351,943 |
| Devin LeMahieu | Republican Party | $213,237 | $236,125 |
| Jessica Katzenmeyer | Democratic Party | $174,042 | $168,631 |
Campaign finance reporting periods
The data above are based on campaign finance reports that candidate committees submitted to the Wisconsin Ethics Commission. Candidate committees represent individuals who have run for state or local office at any point, including past and present officeholders. This article does not include non-candidate committees. Transparency USA publishes campaign finance data following major reporting deadlines.
This article is a joint publication from Ballotpedia and Transparency USA, who are working together to provide campaign finance information for state-level elections. Learn more about our work here.