PUBLIC RELATIONS
Total Donated
$5,309,080
Contributions
16,971
Unique Donors
326
Top Employer
PUBLIC RELATIONS
Contributors who listed PUBLIC RELATIONS on federal itemized receipts account for $5,309,080, according to FEC.gov aggregates on LobbyVault. The cluster is 16,971 contributions from 326 donors. PUBLIC RELATIONS is a two-word occupation-or-shop phrase as typed, not a NAICS advertising-and-PR total, not a trade-association PAC, and not every firm legal name such as EDELMAN or WEBER SHANDWICK. Unitemized gifts stay outside the $5,309,080.
Key figures
- PUBLIC RELATIONS as FEC employer text totals $5,309,080 from 326 donors.
- 16,971 contribution lines sit under that two-word phrase.
- Agency legal names are separate FEC keys if stored that way.
- The label is self-reported form text, not a NAICS industry or association PAC total.
A shop phrase, not an agency census
FEC forms store PUBLIC RELATIONS when that is what the filer typed. They do not apply an advertising NAICS code. The $5,309,080 total is itemized individual gifts whose grouped employer text matches the two-word phrase. It is not billings, not a PRSA membership file, and not every staffer who typed a holding-company or boutique legal name instead.
People who typed PR, PUBLICIST, COMMUNICATIONS, or a specific agency name sit in other rows if stored that way. LobbyVault does not recode those variants into PUBLIC RELATIONS. The FEC field is not a census of communications firms. Occupation pages show titles stored beside the phrase.
326 donors and 16,971 lines
326 unique donors produced 16,971 PUBLIC RELATIONS contribution lines totaling $5,309,080. That is on the order of 52 itemized receipts per donor — a dense repeat pattern for a relatively small unique-person count. The packet does not publish a mean gift or a split among agency, in-house, and freelance communications jobs.
Party share is not on the industry headline. Independent expenditures and association PAC filings are outside the $5,309,080 unless an individual receipt itself carries this phrase. Unitemized gifts never appear. Coverage is federal itemized individual receipts only.
Full analysis: PUBLIC RELATIONS money in federal elections →
Questions
- How much have PUBLIC RELATIONS-listed donors given federally?
- LobbyVault attributes $5,309,080 to the PUBLIC RELATIONS employer string, from 16,971 contributions and 326 donors. These are itemized individual receipts, not a trade-association PAC and not a NAICS advertising-and-PR total. Unitemized gifts and non-federal filings are omitted. Figures on this answer are limited to that FEC employer string as indexed on LobbyVault.
- Is this a communications-agency PAC total?
- No. PUBLIC RELATIONS is a self-reported phrase stored in the employer grouping. The $5,309,080 total is individual contributions whose text grouped to that phrase. Firm treasury and committee PAC filings are other FEC categories. Figures are limited to that FEC employer string as indexed on LobbyVault.
- Does this include Edelman or other agency staff?
- Only if the grouped employer text is PUBLIC RELATIONS. Agency legal names are separate keys if stored that way. A receipt counted here carries the two-word phrase. Staff who typed COMMUNICATIONS or CONSULTANT sit in those other rows. Figures on this answer are limited to that FEC employer string as indexed on LobbyVault.
- How many unique donors listed PUBLIC RELATIONS?
- The rollup counts 326 donors and 16,971 contribution lines. Repeat gifts raise the receipt count to about 52 lines per person. This is not a PRSA headcount. Figures are limited to the 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.
Cycle-over-Cycle Trend
| Cycle | Total | Contributions | Donors |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | $27,812 | 33 | 25 |
| 1982 | $6,100 | 6 | 6 |
| 1984 | $7,200 | 11 | 9 |
| 1986 | $28,350 | 17 | 9 |
| 1988 | $50,000 | 21 | 9 |
| 1990 | $6,400 | 9 | 4 |
| 1992 | $11,750 | 15 | 7 |
| 1994 | $9,175 | 12 | 3 |
| 1996 | $12,150 | 18 | 5 |
| 1998 | $4,860 | 11 | 2 |
| 2000 | $25,683 | 58 | 7 |
| 2002 | $4,816 | 12 | 2 |
| 2004 | $13,225 | 31 | 7 |
| 2006 | $13,700 | 20 | 2 |
| 2008 | $43,806 | 55 | 5 |
| 2010 | $39,201 | 48 | 4 |
| 2012 | $11,500 | 28 | 3 |
| 2014 | $13,665 | 26 | 5 |
Top Donors
| # | Name | Total | Contributions | City / State | Occupation | History |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | LEY, EVELIO W JR | $6,000 | 3 | CORAL GABLES, FL | — | 1980 |
| 2 | CAPOZZI, PAULA C | $2,062 | 1 | FRESNO, CA | — | 1980 |
| 3 | COFFIN, WILLIAM F | $2,000 | 2 | LOS ANGELES, CA | — | 1980 |
| 4 | MC HUGH, VICTORIA M | $2,000 | 1 | CHEVY CHASE, MD | — | 1980 |
| 5 | LANDRIEN, JOSEPH G JR | $2,000 | 1 | NEW ORLEANS, LA | — | 1980 |
| 6 | JOHNSTON, ERNEST S MR | $1,750 | 3 | CHEVY CHASE, MD | — | 1980 |
| 7 | MURPHY, WALTER | $1,250 | 2 | LINWOOD, NJ | — | 1980 |
| 8 | ALLEN, JUDY | $1,250 | 2 | SANTA ROSA, CA | — | 1980 |
| 9 | CASEY, DENNIS M MR | $1,000 | 1 | PITTSBURGH, PA | — | 1980 |
| 10 | DANA, PAMELA R MRS | $1,000 | 1 | NEW YORK, NY | — | 1980 |
| 11 | DARION, J P | $1,000 | 1 | — | — | 1980 |
| 12 | JOHNS, JESS M MR | $1,000 | 1 | BEVERLY HILLS, CA | — | 1980 |
| 13 | LAWS, ROBERT F MR | $1,000 | 1 | GLENDALE, CA | — | 1980 |
| 14 | COWAN, WARREN J | $750 | 2 | BEVERLY HILLS, CA | — | 1980 |
| 15 | GROVE, RICHARD H | $600 | 1 | SAUSALITO, CA | — | 1980 |
| 16 | MULLIN, LAWRENCE | $600 | 1 | NEW YORK, NY | — | 1980 |
| 17 | LAZARO, MARSHALL S | $500 | 1 | WARTHAM, MA | — | 1980 |
| 18 | MACKALL, ROBERT MR | $500 | 1 | NEW YORK, NY | — | 1980 |
| 19 | JANIS, MARTIN E (IK) | $500 | 1 | CHICAGO, IL | — | 1980 |
| 20 | GRAY, ROBERT | $500 | 1 | WASHINGTON, DC | — | 1980 |
| 21 | DAVIS, HOWARD V C MR | $500 | 1 | SARATOGA, WY | — | 1980 |
| 22 | DAVISSON, DEAN C | $500 | 1 | FULLERTON, CA | — | 1980 |
| 23 | DINSMORE, WILLIAM H MR | $500 | 1 | HOLMDEL, NJ | — | 1980 |
| 24 | MOFFATY, WILLIAM E | $400 | 1 | FT LAUDERDALE, FL | — | 1980 |
| 25 | HENDERSN, H DALE | $250 | 1 | HOUSTON, TX | — | 1980 |
| 26 | MERCK, ELIZABETH M MRS | $250 | 1 | BEDMINSTER, NJ | — | 1980 |
| 27 | DAVIS, NED | $250 | 1 | DOVER, DE | — | 1980 |
| 28 | DOWLING, JAMES H | $250 | 1 | LAKE FOREST, IL | — | 1980 |
| 29 | DRUCK, KALMAN B | $250 | 1 | LARCHMONT, NY | — | 1980 |
| 30 | EVANS, BERNARD | $250 | 1 | SAN RAFAEL, CA | — | 1980 |
| 31 | JEFFERIES, LEROY W | $250 | 1 | LOS ANGELES, CA | — | 1980 |
| 32 | HOFFMAN, JAY S MR | $250 | 1 | WOODLAND HILLS, CA | — | 1980 |
| 33 | HAUAN, MARTIN | $250 | 1 | OKLAHOMA, OK | — | 1980 |
| 34 | ENGEL, GERTRUDE | $200 | 1 | WASHINGTON, DC | — | 1980 |
| 35 | FRANCOEUR, ALFRED | $200 | 1 | MANCHESTER, NH | — | 1980 |
| 36 | COFFEY, BERT | $200 | 1 | RICHMOND, CA | — | 1980 |
| 37 | BATCHELDER, DAVID | $200 | 1 | PLYMPTON, MA | — | 1980 |
Top Recipients
| # | Committee | Total | Contributions |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ACTBLUEC00401224 | $44,760 | 7 |
| 2 | REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE - CONTRIBUTIONS (AKA REPUBLICAN NATIONAL FINANCE COMMITTEEC00003376 | $40,000 | 3 |
| 3 | THE HOME DEPOT INC. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEEC00284885 | $20,000 | 1 |
| 4 | DNC SERVICES CORP / DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL COMMITTEEC00010603 | $18,009 | 13 |
| 5 | WINREDC00694323 | $17,644 | 6 |
| 6 | PRIME POLICY GROUP LLC/BURSON POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEEC00201863 | $13,000 | 1 |
| 7 | TOM ROONEY FOR CONGRESSC00432906 | $11,800 | 1 |
| 8 | ELISE VICTORY FUNDC00630632 | $10,800 | 1 |
| 9 | GREEN MOUNTAIN PACC00409110 | $10,450 | 1 |
| 10 | MCCONNELL SENATE COMMITTEEC00193342 | $8,740 | 1 |
| 11 | TRUMP MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN COMMITTEEC00618371 | $7,863 | 5 |
| 12 | HARRIS VICTORY FUNDC00744946 | $7,750 | 3 |
| 13 | WESTERN GROWERS POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEEC00193979 | $7,000 | 1 |
| 14 | FIGHT FOR THE PEOPLE PACC00703975 | $6,627 | 5 |
| 15 | HILL & KNOWLTON INC. POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEEC00183087 | $5,800 | 1 |
| 16 | MASSA FOR CONGRESSC00411306 | $5,500 | 1 |
| 17 | MORE LIKE AMERICAC00652594 | $5,400 | 1 |
| 18 | COMER FOR CONGRESSC00588764 | $5,000 | 1 |
| 19 | CHARLIE CRIST FOR CONGRESSC00590067 | $5,000 | 1 |
| 20 | FUND FOR AMERICA'S FUTURE, INC; THEC00195107 | $5,000 | 1 |
| 21 | COCA-COLA REFRESHMENTS USA, INC NONPARTISAN POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE FOR GOOD GOVERNMENTC00250134 | $4,912 | 1 |
| 22 | FRIENDS OF BOB BESTANI FOR CONGRESSC00458216 | $4,800 | 1 |
| 23 | MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN PACC00580100 | $4,800 | 3 |
| 24 | DCCCC00000935 | $4,745 | 6 |
| 25 | GEORGE BUSH FOR PRESIDENTC00106922 | $4,250 | 8 |