How much have CONSULTANT donors given federally?

LobbyVault attributes $91.8M to the CONSULTANT FEC string, from 224,551 contributions and 6,522 donors. The label is not a NAICS professional-services total and does not include named consulting firms as separate employer keys. Figures on this answer are limited to that FEC string as indexed on LobbyVault; unitemized gifts and non-federal filings are omitted.

Does this mean campaign consultants?

Some rows may be political consultants; many will not be. FEC text does not encode client type. The $91.8M figure is every itemized receipt grouped under CONSULTANT, regardless of specialty. Figures on this answer are limited to that FEC string as indexed on LobbyVault; unitemized gifts and non-federal filings are omitted.

Is CONSULTANT merged with SELF-EMPLOYED?

No. They are different strings. SELF, CONTRACTOR, and firm names are also separate. Combining them is a research recode, not the FEC file. Figures on this answer are limited to that FEC string as indexed on LobbyVault; unitemized gifts and non-federal filings are omitted.

How many unique consultant donors are there?

The rollup counts 6,522 donors and 224,551 contribution lines. Repeat gifts raise the receipt count. This is not a headcount of all U.S. consultants. Figures on this answer are limited to that FEC string as indexed on LobbyVault; unitemized gifts and non-federal filings are omitted.

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CONSULTANT

Total Donated

$91,820,178

Contributions

224,551

Unique Donors

6,522

Top Employer

CONSULTANT

Contributors who listed CONSULTANT on federal itemized receipts account for $91.8M, according to FEC.gov aggregates on LobbyVault. The cluster is 224,551 contributions from 6,522 donors. CONSULTANT is a self-reported employer/occupation string, not a NAICS professional-services sector, and it is one of the vaguest high-dollar labels in the table. Management consultants, campaign vendors, IT contractors, and people who declined to name a client can all generate the same word. LobbyVault does not split them.

Key figures

CONSULTANT-labeled receipts total $91.8M.
6,522 donors produced 224,551 contribution lines.
The word is not split by specialty and is not a NAICS sector.
SELF-EMPLOYED and named firms are separate FEC strings.

A catch-all professional word

Employer and occupation fields accept CONSULTANT without a specialty. That is useful for a donor who does not want to name a firm and useless for a researcher who wants NAICS 5416. The $91.8M total is the word, not a consulting-industry census.

People who typed McKinsey, a boutique, or SELF-EMPLOYED are in other rows. This page does not pull those receipts in.

6,522 donors, 224,551 receipts

6,522 donors produced 224,551 CONSULTANT contribution lines. Repeat giving explains receipts exceeding unique donors. The dollar total, $91.8M, sits near REQUESTED in the ranked table — coincidence of magnitude, not a shared population.

No party split is attached to this industry headline. Campaign-consulting firms as PACs or vendors are other FEC categories.

Full analysis: CONSULTANT as FEC text: $91.8M itemized →

Questions

How much have CONSULTANT donors given federally?: LobbyVault attributes $91.8M to the CONSULTANT FEC string, from 224,551 contributions and 6,522 donors. The label is not a NAICS professional-services total and does not include named consulting firms as separate employer keys. Figures on this answer are limited to that FEC string as indexed on LobbyVault; unitemized gifts and non-federal filings are omitted.
Does this mean campaign consultants?: Some rows may be political consultants; many will not be. FEC text does not encode client type. The $91.8M figure is every itemized receipt grouped under CONSULTANT, regardless of specialty. Figures on this answer are limited to that FEC string as indexed on LobbyVault; unitemized gifts and non-federal filings are omitted.
Is CONSULTANT merged with SELF-EMPLOYED?: No. They are different strings. SELF, CONTRACTOR, and firm names are also separate. Combining them is a research recode, not the FEC file. Figures on this answer are limited to that FEC string as indexed on LobbyVault; unitemized gifts and non-federal filings are omitted.
How many unique consultant donors are there?: The rollup counts 6,522 donors and 224,551 contribution lines. Repeat gifts raise the receipt count. This is not a headcount of all U.S. consultants. Figures on this answer are limited to that FEC string as indexed on LobbyVault; unitemized gifts and non-federal filings are omitted.

Industry labels come from FEC employer/occupation self-reports, not NAICS. Data from FEC.gov via LobbyVault.

Industry ties

All data ties →

Cycle-over-Cycle Trend

2000 · $1,374,158 2002 · $1,280,529 1998 · $1,115,541 2012 · $643,419 2014 · $601,520 2004 · $434,807 2006 · $387,749 2008 · $355,471 1996 · $341,325 1980 · $285,464

CONSULTANT political contributions by election cycle.
Cycle	Total	Contributions	Donors
1980	$285,464	402	212
1982	$181,585	186	60
1984	$198,326	185	62
1986	$126,700	162	57
1988	$114,584	135	52
1990	$114,965	183	46
1992	$174,122	222	48
1994	$179,292	201	43
1996	$341,325	225	46
1998	$1,115,541	237	38
2000	$1,374,158	252	43
2002	$1,280,529	227	34
2004	$434,807	232	44
2006	$387,749	200	33
2008	$355,471	233	40
2010	$237,990	151	28
2012	$643,419	202	36
2014	$601,520	180	22

Top Donors

Top CONSULTANT donors ranked by total donated.
#	Name	Total	Contributions	City / State	Occupation	History
1	DOOLITTLE, C A JR	$16,750	4	WICHITA, KS	—	1980
2	ARNOLD, CARL F	$16,450	25	MCLEAN, VA	—	1980
3	KENT, MILTON F	$12,000	12	GREENWICH, CT	—	1980
4	DAYTON, MARK	$11,250	11	MINNEAPOLIS, MN	—	1980
5	HEFFNER, R	$9,999	2	ATLANTA, GA	—	1980
6	BUTTENWIESER, PETER L	$7,500	12	PHILA, PA	—	1980
7	GILLIES, ARCH	$6,000	5	NEW YORK, NY	—	1980
8	HACKLER, WARREN CRAIG	$4,000	6	ARLINGTON, VA	—	1980
9	LINTON, RON M	$3,750	6	WASHINGTON, DC	—	1980
10	HACKLER, WARREN C	$3,700	8	KEARNEYSVILLE, WV	—	1980
11	MARSHALL, ANTHONY D HON	$3,500	4	NEW YORK, NY	—	1980
12	DONER, COLONEL V	$3,000	1	CARMEL, CA	—	1980
13	GOLDSTEIN, B B MR	$3,000	3	MIAMI, FL	—	1980
14	BURKE, FRED B	$2,800	5	WASH, DC	—	1980
15	DEGEN, LOUIS	$2,700	6	DENVER, CO	—	1980
16	HOWLETT, WILLIAM MR	$2,600	4	KENILWORTH, IL	—	1980
17	BUTTENWIESER, PETER	$2,500	4	PHILADELPHIA, PA	—	1980
18	KEARNS, HENRY	$2,500	3	SAN FRANCISCO, CA	—	1980
19	FARNAM, ROBERT G	$2,300	3	LAKE FOREST, IL	—	1980
20	DUNHAM, RICHARD S	$2,250	3	HANOVER, NH	—	1980
21	HUNTER, COLIN	$2,250	4	PALO ALTO, CA	—	1980
22	HARTZMAN, EDWIN	$2,250	4	NEW ORLEANS, LA	—	1980
23	JOHNSON, H BLUME	$2,000	2	SHREVEPORT, LA	—	1980
24	DRUM, JAMES H COL	$2,000	1	WASHINGTON, DC	—	1980
25	MAGLE, CHESTER A	$2,000	1	WASHINGTON, DC	—	1980
26	ARNOLD, CARL F MR	$2,000	2	MC LEAN, VA	—	1980
27	HAYDEN, F M	$1,950	1	PALM SPRINGS, CA	—	1980
28	BLUM, RICHARD C	$1,825	3	SAN FRANCISCO, CA	—	1980
29	BOTSFORD, CHARLES G	$1,800	8	WASHINTON, DC	—	1980
30	HACKLER, GEORGE CONLEY	$1,750	3	ARLINGTON, VA	—	1980
31	GREEN, DEL	$1,750	3	FOSTER CITY, CA	—	1980
32	BROWN, RUSSELL I	$1,750	2	ROCKVILLE, MD	—	1980
33	HICKMAN, BERT INGALLS JR	$1,750	4	WASH, DC	—	1980
34	JAENKE, EDWIN A	$1,700	3	WASHINGTON, DC	—	1980
35	CRAWFORD, WILLIAM S	$1,650	4	FAIRFAX, VA	—	1980
36	KLEINHANDLER, MITCHELL	$1,600	2	MILLBURN, NJ	—	1980
37	BIDDLE, STEVE	$1,500	1	WASHINGTON, DC	—	1980
38	KING, BILL G	$1,500	2	HUNTSVILLE, AL	—	1980
39	HEFFNER, RICHARD L	$1,500	3	ATLANTA, GA	—	1980
40	FERGUSON, J B JR	$1,500	2	PALATINE, IL	—	1980
41	HARRINGTON, KEVIN B	$1,500	4	SALEM, MA	—	1980
42	CORRIN, MALCOLM L	$1,500	2	EAST ORANGE, NJ	—	1980
43	DAVIS, NANCY (IK)	$1,400	7	WASHINGTON, DC	—	1980
44	BONBRIGHT, WILLIAM P MR	$1,360	3	GROSSE PTE FARMS, MI	—	1980
45	LAURELLI, MARY F MS	$1,350	2	CRANSTON, RI	—	1980
46	MCNEAL, WILLIAM C	$1,250	2	NEW ORLEANS, LA	—	1980
47	HALEY, MARTIN RYAN	$1,250	2	ST PAUL, MN	—	1980
48	BURRILL, GARY W	$1,250	3	NEWPORT BEACH, CA	—	1980
49	KENT, MILTON F MR	$1,200	5	GREENWICH, CT	—	1980
50	HENDERSHOT, JAMES R	$1,200	2	ANCHORAGE, AK	—	1980

Top Recipients

Top political committees that received CONSULTANT donations.
#	Committee	Total	Contributions
1	DSCC/NON-FED UNINCORP ASSOCC60001245	$1,378,500	24
2	UNITE THE COUNTRYC00701888	$1,000,000	3
3	DNC-NON-FEDERAL INDIVIDUALC60000254	$831,300	28
4	DSCCC00042366	$559,732	49
5	SMPC00484642	$504,525	10
6	DSCC NON-FEDERAL INDIVIDUALSC60000601	$285,000	27
7	AMERICA'S PROMISEC00781385	$250,000	1
8	DNC NON-FEDERAL UNINCORPORATED ASSOCIATION ACCOUNTC60000692	$215,000	12
9	DCCCC NON-FEDERAL ACCOUNT #7C60001518	$187,500	12
10	ACTBLUEC00401224	$173,171	43
11	DNC SERVICES CORP / DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL COMMITTEEC00010603	$101,693	64
12	TAKE BACK THE SENATEC00780122	$100,000	1
13	DSCC NON-FEDERAL BUILDING FUNDC60000023	$100,000	11
14	NRSCC00027466	$87,771	24
15	DNC-NONFEDERAL-CORPORATEC60000262	$85,000	16
16	WINREDC00694323	$81,457	14
17	NATIONAL REPUBLICAN SENATORIAL COMMITTEE - CONTRIBUTIONS *C00091009	$79,700	48
18	RNC REPUBLICAN NATIONAL STATE ELECTIONS COMMITTEEC60000015	$73,763	3
19	REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE - CONTRIBUTIONS (AKA REPUBLICAN NATIONAL FINANCE COMMITTEEC00003376	$64,409	40
20	DCCCE NON-FEDERAL ACCOUNT #5C60000288	$58,500	12
21	VALUES ARE VITALC00552422	$50,000	1
22	DNC - NON FEDERAL REDISTRICTINGC60001823	$50,000	12
23	PROTECT THE HOUSEC00669622	$50,000	1
24	RESTORE OUR FUTURE, INC.C00490045	$50,000	1
25	OBAMA VICTORY FUND 2012C00494740	$46,950	22