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MCDONALD'S
Total Donated
$4,386,214
Contributions
11,723
Unique Donors
754
Top Employer
MCDONALD'S
Filers who listed MCDONALD'S as employer or occupation on federal campaign reports account for $4,386,214 in itemized receipts on FEC.gov. The cluster holds 11,723 contributions and 754 donors. Mean gift size is about $374; mean per donor is about $5,817. The apostrophe spelling is FEC free text. It is not a NAICS limited-service restaurant code, not a franchise PAC-only figure, and not a count of restaurants.
Key figures
- MCDONALD'S FEC strings sum to $4,386,214.
- 11,723 contributions came from 754 donors.
- About $374 per gift and $5,817 per donor on a simple mean.
- Local franchise LLC names may be other slugs.
- The label is FEC free text, not NAICS.
754 donors and $4,386,214
Seven hundred fifty-four unique people produced 11,723 contributions, about 16 itemized gifts per person—lower frequency than utility and campus payroll clusters in this wave. $4,386,214 ÷ 754 ≈ $5,817 per donor. Franchisees, corporate employees, and people who listed the brand as a shorthand can all appear in the 754. The FEC does not distinguish owner-operator from crew on this industry key.
McDonalds without an apostrophe, McDonald’s Corporation, and local franchise legal names can exist as other keys. This page is MCDONALD'S only. Top employer matches that apostrophe string.
Brand versus franchise legal name
Independent franchisees often write a local LLC as employer. Those rows sit in the LLC’s industry slug, not here. $4,386,214 is the MCDONALD'S string cluster. Adding unknown franchise-entity totals would invent a system-wide figure the packet does not contain.
Industry labels come from FEC employer/occupation self-reports, not NAICS. Occupation breakdowns still help for owner, manager, and related titles.
Full analysis: McDonald's money in federal elections →
Questions
- How much have McDonald's-labeled filers given federally?
- The MCDONALD'S industry cluster totals $4,386,214 in itemized FEC contributions, from 11,723 contributions and 754 donors. Filers listed that brand spelling as employer or occupation. The figure is a text rollup, not a corporate or franchise-system political budget. Figures on this answer are limited to that FEC employer/occupation string as indexed on LobbyVault from FEC.gov. Unitemized gifts, state filings, and lobbying reports are omitted and are not added to the itemized total cited here.
- Are franchise owners included?
- They are included only if the industry key is MCDONALD'S. Filers who listed a local LLC as employer sit in that LLC’s slug. This page’s $4,386,214 is the brand-string cluster. Figures on this answer are limited to that FEC employer/occupation string as indexed on LobbyVault from FEC.gov. Unitemized gifts, state filings, and lobbying reports are omitted and are not added to the itemized total cited here.
- How many unique donors are in this cluster?
- LobbyVault counts 754 donors and 11,723 contributions. Unique-donor count is matching disclosure text, not a headcount of restaurants or employees. Figures on this answer are limited to that FEC employer/occupation string as indexed on LobbyVault from FEC.gov. Unitemized gifts, state filings, and lobbying reports are omitted and are not added to the itemized total cited here.
- Is this NAICS for limited-service restaurants?
- No. FEC individual files do not include NAICS. LobbyVault groups employer/occupation self-reports. MCDONALD'S is the typed brand name, including the apostrophe as stored. Figures on this answer are limited to that FEC employer/occupation string as indexed on LobbyVault from FEC.gov. Unitemized gifts, state filings, and lobbying reports are omitted and are not added to the itemized total cited here.
Industry labels come from FEC employer/occupation self-reports, not NAICS. Data from FEC.gov via LobbyVault.
Cycle-over-Cycle Trend
2012 · $342,5602010 · $324,5922016 · $324,3602014 · $293,8272018 · $257,2152008 · $157,7152006 · $97,3001996 · $93,1502000 · $89,2901994 · $81,951
| Cycle | Total | Contributions | Donors |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | $7,350 | 9 | 5 |
| 1982 | $2,750 | 4 | 4 |
| 1984 | $4,000 | 6 | 3 |
| 1986 | $500 | 1 | 1 |
| 1988 | $8,500 | 12 | 11 |
| 1990 | $3,550 | 7 | 6 |
| 1992 | $21,300 | 43 | 25 |
| 1994 | $81,951 | 134 | 84 |
| 1996 | $93,150 | 141 | 65 |
| 1998 | $74,300 | 138 | 90 |
| 2000 | $89,290 | 157 | 84 |
| 2002 | $28,400 | 60 | 38 |
| 2004 | $68,387 | 100 | 43 |
| 2006 | $97,300 | 135 | 74 |
| 2008 | $157,715 | 192 | 82 |
| 2010 | $324,592 | 360 | 231 |
| 2012 | $342,560 | 401 | 234 |
| 2014 | $293,827 | 277 | 163 |
| 2016 | $324,360 | 946 | 164 |
| 2018 | $257,215 | 871 | 123 |
Top Donors
| # | Name | Total | Contributions | City / State | Occupation | History |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | YIN, C C | $71,200 | 60 | VACVILLES, CA | — | 1992–2014 |
| 2 | KINDLER, JEFFREY B | $70,331 | 66 | SOUTHPORT, CT | — | 1996–2014 |
| 3 | DOBSKI, THOMAS | $53,150 | 60 | LEAVENWORTH, KS | — | 1988–2014 |
| 4 | DELAMATER, STEVEN M | $49,000 | 24 | CHAMBERSBURG, PA | — | 1992–2012 |
| 5 | HALEY, MICHAEL | $48,790 | 53 | GREENSBORO, NC | — | 1992–2014 |
| 6 | MUELLER, ALBERT | $42,100 | 90 | CLARKS SUMMIT, PA | — | 1982–2012 |
| 7 | TILLMAN, LEE | $35,250 | 17 | GERMANTOWN, TN | — | 1994–2014 |
| 8 | SANCHEZ, EDUARDO | $33,860 | 23 | BURR RIDGE, IL | — | 2004–2014 |
| 9 | HUTCHISON, BOB M | $27,500 | 12 | STAFFORDSVILLE, KY | — | 1994–2014 |
| 10 | HERIAUD, LEE A | $24,500 | 12 | SCOTTSDALE, AZ | — | 1998–2014 |
| 11 | FRANKLIN, CHARLES | $23,850 | 38 | LAGUNA BEACH, CA | — | 1980–2014 |
| 12 | ALLEN, BRAD | $23,109 | 88 | CLARKSVILLE, AR | — | 1996–2016 |
| 13 | MAGRUDER, MARION M JR | $22,750 | 36 | PHOENIX, AZ | — | 1980–2000 |
| 14 | MACK, LUTHER | $22,200 | 18 | RENO, NV | — | 1996–2010 |
| 15 | ASHLIN, DANIEL B | $22,000 | 12 | FORT LAUDERDALE, FL | — | 1992–2000 |
| 16 | FINDLAY, LORI M | $20,800 | 10 | STEPHENVILLE, TX | — | 1998–2014 |
| 17 | PASCHEN, CLAYTON F JR | $20,004 | 9 | CAMARILLO, CA | — | 1998–2014 |
| 18 | LEWIS, JERRY A | $17,400 | 10 | BLUFFTON, OH | — | 1998–2014 |
| 19 | SMALL, GARY | $15,740 | 17 | LULING, LA | — | 2000–2014 |
| 20 | SWEENEY, PAUL M | $14,900 | 16 | MARS, PA | — | 1994–2014 |
| 21 | MELIANS, DIEGO II | $13,000 | 4 | HIALEAH, FL | LICENSEE | 2012–2014 |
| 22 | ADAIR, EARNEST L. | $12,500 | 6 | FOUNTAIN HILLS, AZ | LICENSEE | 2012–2016 |
| 23 | SALEEBY, ELAINE | $12,450 | 23 | HOPE MILLS, NC | — | 1994–2014 |
| 24 | CHRISMAN, SUSAN | $11,900 | 10 | BENTON, LA | LICENSEE | 2006–2014 |
| 25 | MACK, RITA J | $11,900 | 11 | ATLANTIC CITY, NJ | — | 1988–2014 |
| 26 | BROOKS, JOEL | $11,690 | 21 | WEST LAFAYETTE, IN | LICENSEE | 2010–2014 |
| 27 | BUSH, JIM | $11,550 | 12 | LAWRENCEBURG, TN | — | 1994–2014 |
| 28 | HANSEN, GERALD P | $10,750 | 9 | BLUE SPRINGS, MO | — | 1994–2012 |
| 29 | SCHRADER, CRAIG M. | $10,600 | 3 | STOCKTON, CA | LICENSEE | 2010–2014 |
| 30 | HANNER, JULIANNE | $10,500 | 10 | MONTESANO, WA | — | 2000–2014 |
| 31 | COCHRAN, LITTON T III | $10,325 | 20 | KNOXVILLE, TN | — | 1994–2012 |
| 32 | NICHOLS, GLEN D. JR. | $10,000 | 2 | JOPLIN, MO | LICENSEE | 2012–2014 |
| 33 | CASTRO, RICHARD A | $9,350 | 9 | EL PASO, TX | — | 1990–2014 |
| 34 | MACDONALD, SHARON M | $9,100 | 8 | PLACENTIA, CA | LICENSEE | 2006–2014 |
| 35 | DESCHER, WILLIAM H | $9,100 | 28 | OCEAN SPRINGS, MS | — | 1994–2014 |
| 36 | LEONARD, F STEVEN | $8,700 | 8 | FREMONT, NE | — | 2002–2014 |
| 37 | DANA, HASSAN | $8,600 | 3 | AMARILLO, TX | LICENSEE | 2010–2014 |
| 38 | WITZEL, DONALD K. | $8,500 | 4 | DANVILLE, IL | LICENSEE | 2010–2012 |
| 39 | DOBSKI, ANTHONY E | $8,400 | 9 | SAN ANTONIO, TX | — | 1994–2014 |
| 40 | GARCIA, RANDOLPH A | $8,300 | 5 | NORTH HILLS, CA | — | 1998–2012 |
| 41 | MEOLI, ANTHONY J | $8,200 | 17 | BEL AIR, MD | — | 1992–2010 |
| 42 | SHARPE, MICHAEL | $8,150 | 12 | DECATUR, IL | — | 2000–2014 |
| 43 | HEALY, GERALD F | $8,000 | 12 | LEXINGTON, KY | — | 1980–2002 |
| 44 | BRONSON, JOHN F. | $8,000 | 5 | DURANGO, CO | LICENSEE | 2010–2014 |
| 45 | O'REILLY, HENRY CHARLES III | $8,000 | 4 | PLANO, TX | LICENSEE | 2012–2014 |
| 46 | ARLT, THOMAS M. | $8,000 | 3 | LAS VEGAS, NV | LICENSEE | 2010–2016 |
| 47 | DESCHER, WILLIAM | $7,530 | 25 | OCEAN SPRING, MS | — | 2000–2014 |
| 48 | VANDERHOOP, BARBARA A. MS. | $7,500 | 7 | GLENDORA, CA | OWNER | 2006 |
| 49 | PETERSON, DAVID S | $7,500 | 10 | SANTA BARBARA, CA | — | 1998–2014 |
| 50 | MCGEORGE, DAVID | $7,400 | 13 | REDDING, CA | — | 1994–2012 |
Top Recipients
| # | Committee | Total | Contributions |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | MCDONALDS CORPORATION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEEC00063164 | $1,441,654 | 2,085 |
| 2 | WINREDC00694323 | $202,554 | 645 |
| 3 | ACTBLUEC00401224 | $139,136 | 542 |
| 4 | REPUBLICAN PARTY OF KENTUCKYC00156810 | $67,800 | 26 |
| 5 | AMODEI FOR NEVADAC00496760 | $64,600 | 9 |
| 6 | MCCONNELL SENATE COMMITTEEC00193342 | $47,193 | 189 |
| 7 | MARATHON OIL COMPANY EMPLOYEES POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (MEPAC)C00040568 | $40,000 | 17 |
| 8 | TRUMP MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN COMMITTEEC00618371 | $37,479 | 395 |
| 9 | OBAMA VICTORY FUNDC00451393 | $35,350 | 228 |
| 10 | HERN FOR CONGRESSC00636092 | $33,400 | 243 |
| 11 | NRCCC00075820 | $31,792 | 292 |
| 12 | OBAMA FOR AMERICAC00431445 | $28,955 | 237 |
| 13 | MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN PACC00580100 | $24,555 | 352 |
| 14 | REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEEC00003418 | $24,271 | 423 |
| 15 | NRSCC00027466 | $23,929 | 466 |
| 16 | DSCCC00042366 | $22,016 | 211 |
| 17 | TRUMP VICTORYC00618389 | $20,300 | 57 |
| 18 | FIGHT FOR THE PEOPLE PACC00703975 | $20,089 | 417 |
| 19 | CLUB FOR GROWTH PACC00432260 | $20,051 | 118 |
| 20 | MCCONNELL FOR THE MAJORITYC00548651 | $19,000 | 79 |
| 21 | DNC SERVICES CORP / DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL COMMITTEEC00010603 | $18,731 | 168 |
| 22 | RICHARD BURR COMMITTEE; THEC00385526 | $17,300 | 76 |
| 23 | PERDUE FOR SENATEC00547570 | $17,298 | 144 |
| 24 | GEORGIANS FOR KELLY LOEFFLERC00729608 | $16,266 | 136 |
| 25 | PFIZER INC. PACC00016683 | $14,831 | 66 |