Dealer donations in the 2008 FEC cycle

Dealer × 2008

Two FEC fields define the cell: occupation DEALER and election cycle 2008. Matching rows sum to $658,564, 711 contributions, and 402 donors. DEALER is a one-word title. Auto, art, antiques, and other trades can share the string. Auto Dealer is a more specific key if stored separately. FEC.gov does not verify a franchise. The occupation hub is $8,293,611 across every cycle in the aggregate. The 2008 cycle hub mixes every other occupation that used that year. Neither hub restates this intersection; this tie page exists because the two dimensions meet.

2008’s dollar share is 7.9% ($658,564 of $8,293,611). The remainder, $7,635,047, sits in other cycles on the occupation hub. 402 donor keys and 711 lines describe this presidential-cycle cell. Correlation between a job title and a two-year FEC window is a reporting overlap, not causation of an election outcome. Itemized individual receipts are the coverage. Unitemized money never appears in $658,564. Dealer × 2010 and Dealer × 2014 are other cycle pages against the same $8,293,611 occupation roll. This file is 2008 only.

DEALER as typed, not a state dealer-license file or an NADA membership roll

$8,293,611 is the occupation-side denominator. It is not limited to 2008. Auto Dealer, Car Dealer, and Sales are other occupation keys if stored separately. Adding those keys to $8,293,611 would be a researcher-built recode, not this table. Occupation labels are filer-entered on itemized individual receipts. DEALER is a one-word title. Auto, art, antiques, and other trades can share the string. Auto Dealer is a more specific key if stored separately. FEC.gov does not verify a franchise.

Open Dealer donations for the $8,293,611 roll. Open the 2008 election cycle hub for every occupation in that window. All occupations and All FEC ties place this pair beside other occupation-cycle pages without combining dollar figures. A 7.9% year share of this occupation total means the rest of the labeled money sits outside 2008.

711 dealer receipts in 2008

Dividing $658,564 by 711 contributions yields about $926 per gift. Dividing by 402 donors yields about $1,638 per donor. Gifts per donor average about 1.8 (711 ÷ 402). Those ratios describe this string in 2008, not payroll at firms that employ people with similar titles, and not a state dealer-license file or an NADA membership roll.

402 is a donor-key count inside the occupation × cycle aggregate, not a headcount of everyone who held the job in 2008. Repeat itemization, couples filing separately, and people who used the string on some receipts but not others all move the 402 figure. The cycle hub still holds every other occupation’s 2008 receipts beside this cell. People who left occupation blank or used a nearby spelling are not in $658,564.

Occupation versus PAC and a state dealer-license file or an NADA membership roll

A 7.9% share of Dealer-coded dollars from 2008 does not mean the occupation caused those gifts, and it does not mean people with that title funded a policy outcome. Occupation and cycle are reported together. The overlap is descriptive. Independent expenditures, committee-to-committee transfers, and unitemized gifts are out of scope.

Federal awards on USAspending.gov are a different ledger. This join does not claim that 2008 donations funded contracts or grants. Quote $658,564 as itemized individual receipts tagged DEALER in 2008, source FEC.gov, and stop there. Correlation is not causation.

How to cite dealer money in 2008

A complete claim names Dealer and 2008, then $658,564, 711 contributions, 402 donors, and 7.9% of $8,293,611, source FEC.gov. Do not convert 402 keys into licensed or employed practitioners. Do not fold independent expenditures or USAspending awards into the cell. Keep both sides of the name—Dealer and 2008—whenever the dollars are quoted. Mean gift $926 and mean per donor $1,638 travel with those counts; they do not travel with a state dealer-license file or an NADA membership roll.

This URL exists because two filters meet. Dealer donations rolls every cycle into one DEALER running total. The 2008 election cycle rolls every occupation into one 2008 total. Only the Dealer × 2008 overlay applies both filters, which is why this page cites 711 receipts and $658,564. All FEC ties is the directory of other occupation-cycle cells.

Why this tie page is not either hub

The occupation hub still holds $7,635,047 outside 2008. Most of the $8,293,611 roll is not this cycle’s cell when 7.9% is the year share. Auto Dealer, Car Dealer, and Sales are other occupation keys if stored separately. Those titles are not parents of DEALER on this page. Gifts per donor in 2008 average about 1.8.

Presidential cycles still use the same occupation string. What 2008 changes is the window, not the spelling of DEALER. Keep Dealer in the title and the H1 so the page is not mistaken for a generic 2008 roundup.

Questions

How much did dealer filers donate in 2008?

The join records $658,564 in itemized individual contributions for occupation Dealer in the 2008 FEC cycle, from 711 contributions and 402 donors. The occupation’s all-cycle total is $8,293,611, so 2008 is 7.9% of that roll. Figures come from FEC.gov aggregates. Occupation labels are filer-entered.

Does this include a dealer-association PAC or a franchise PAC?

No. $658,564 is individual contributions tagged Dealer in 2008. Committee PACs file as committees. Mixing PAC spending with $658,564 would blend FEC tables. See Dealer donations or the 2008 election cycle hub for committee names. Dealer in 2008 is $658,564 on 711 receipts from 402 donors.

Are dealer labels standardized on FEC forms?

No. FEC.gov stores the occupation as typed. This join uses DEALER. Auto Dealer, Car Dealer, and Sales are other keys when those words appear. LobbyVault does not recode the string into a state dealer-license file or an NADA membership roll. Cite $658,564 for this title in 2008 on 711 receipts from 402 donors.

What two tables meet on this page?

Dealer donations ($8,293,611 for the string) and the 2008 election cycle. The overlap is $658,564 from 711 receipts and 402 donors. All FEC ties lists other occupation-cycle cells. All occupations lists neighboring titles. Figures are FEC.gov individual contribution aggregates for Dealer in 2008.