Self Employed itemized contributions in the 2010 cycle

What $1,286,118 measures in this occupation–cycle cell

$1,286,118 is the sum of itemized individual contributions whose occupation field matches SELF EMPLOYED and whose cycle equals 2010. 1,286 is the count of those rows. 679 is the unique-donor count inside the same filter. Dividing dollars by donors yields about $1,894 per donor in this cell; dividing by rows yields about $1,000 per contribution line. Those ratios are arithmetic on the packet. They are not typical-gift surveys and not median gifts.

Do not add $1,286,118 to another cycle and call the sum the occupation total unless you are rebuilding the extract. The occupation-wide figure is already published as $36,457,822. Do not subtract $1,286,118 from a cycle-wide FEC total and treat the remainder as “everyone else” without naming that other extract. The live tables are Self Employed donations and 2010 election cycle. This prose is a snapshot of the join.

What the string SELF EMPLOYED includes — and excludes

The occupation-wide total for SELF EMPLOYED on this extract is $36,457,822 ($36.5 million). That figure includes every indexed cycle for the same string, not only 2010. $1,286,118 is the 2010 slice (3.5%). SELF EMPLOYED is the two-word string as typed, with a space. It is not merged with SELF, SELF-EMPLOYED, SELF EMPLOYED/OWNER, or BUSINESS OWNER. It is not a Census nonemployer total and not a NAICS sole-proprietor roll-up. People who typed a trade next to self-employment live on those other keys.

679 donors in 2010 is not the occupation’s unique-person count across years. Repeat givers can appear in several cycles; the occupation hub and this join use different filters. $36,457,822 can therefore move when later cycles are added to the extract even if the 2010 cell is unchanged. Quote the occupation total and the cycle total as two sentences.

The 2010 reporting window, not a single Election Day

The 2010 value is the FEC two-year election cycle that closes on the 2010 federal election calendar. It is a reporting window on individual contribution records, not a single Election Day total and not a count of offices on the ballot. Receipts dated inside that cycle window stay here; receipts dated in another even-year cycle sit on that other join. Inside that window, Self Employed accounts for $1,286,118 on 1,286 contributions from 679 donors.

Presidential-year versus midterm labels describe the federal calendar. They do not appear as extra dollar fields in this packet. The facts are 2010, $1,286,118, 1,286, and 679. Do not import turnout, ad-spend, or independent-expenditure totals into this cell. Those are other schedules and other datasets.

Why 1,286 contributions is not 679 people twice

1,286 contributions and 679 donors describe different units. A row is an itemized receipt line. A donor is a unique person inside this occupation–cycle filter as LobbyVault matches names. 1,286 divided by 679 is the mean lines per donor in this cell; $1,286,118 divided by 679 is about $1,894 per donor; $1,286,118 divided by 1,286 is about $1,000 per line. Means are not medians. Large gifts pull the mean up. The packet does not publish a median.

Joint fundraising, partnership attributions, and spouses who each file can inflate rows faster than donors. That pattern is normal in FEC itemizations. It is not evidence of a scheme. Quote both integers: 1,286 lines, 679 donors, $1,286,118 dollars, cycle 2010, occupation SELF EMPLOYED.

Limits of a filer-typed occupation in 2010

This page is not a claim that donations fund federal spending. FEC individual contributions and USAspending awards are different datasets. The join here is occupation × cycle inside FEC.gov only. It is not a ranking of occupations, not medical or political advice, and not a statement that Self Employed as a profession acted in concert in 2010.

Correlation across years is not in this packet. This file does not publish a 2010 versus prior-cycle change because a second cycle total is not in the facts. If you need a time series, open other occupation–cycle ties individually and keep each cell labeled. Do not subtract a number you do not have.

Questions

What is the 2010 total for occupation SELF EMPLOYED?

Itemized individual contributions with occupation SELF EMPLOYED total $1,286,118 in the 2010 FEC cycle. LobbyVault counts 1,286 contributions and 679 unique donors in that cell. The occupation-wide total for the same string on this extract is $36,457,822, so 2010 is 3.5% of that roll-up. Figures come from FEC.gov aggregates. Labels are filer-entered.

Does the 2010 figure include every cycle for Self Employed?

No. $1,286,118 is the 2010 slice only. The occupation hub still shows $36,457,822 across the extract. This page is a join: occupation string plus even-year cycle. It is not a restatement of Self Employed donations and not a restatement of 2010 election cycle. Adding other cycles here would invent dollars the packet does not list.

Are 1,286 contributions the same as unique people?

The join lists 679 unique donors and 1,286 contribution lines for SELF EMPLOYED in 2010. A person can give more than once, so lines exceed donors. About $1,894 per donor and $1,000 per line are means from $1,286,118, not medians and not typical gifts. Name matching can split or merge people. This is not a job-census headcount.

Are similar occupation strings merged into SELF EMPLOYED?

No. The filter is the exact occupation string SELF EMPLOYED as filers typed it. Nearby titles stay on other keys listed under all occupations. The string is not a NAICS code, not a BLS occupation, and not a PAC. See Self Employed donations for this key’s all-cycle table and all FEC ties for other joins. Cite FEC.gov.