Presidential Campaign Capital Executive Summary
The 2016 presidential primaries are ramping up, and with those races come a slew of public awareness events aimed at positioning each candidate in the best spot to win their party’s nomination. As Americans begin to learn more about the people hoping to run the country, Personal Capital wants to see how money may help decide our next Commander in Chief.In 2012, about $7 billion was spent on political races across the United States. More than a third of that total ($2.6 billion) was spent on the presidential election alone. For reference, about 129 million people voted in the 2012 election, and if the money spent promoting Barack Obama and Mitt Romney were split between every voter, they would each receive a check for more than $54 dollars! This and more can be seen in our exclusive blogger community infographic.
GOP presidential hopeful Donald Trump has by far the highest net worth, sitting at slightly more than $4.1 billion. On the Democratic side, current frontrunner Hillary Clinton holds a personal net worth of about $30 million. Members of Congress all also pretty well off. The median net worth of a member of Congress is more than $440,000, while the median U.S. adult has only about a tenth of that!
Lastly, unless Trump wins the election the net worth of the country’s next president will be dwarfed by those of Washington, Jefferson and Roosevelt. In 2010 dollars, President George Washington would have been worth an astounding $525 million, more than doubling (and then some) his closest rival, Thomas Jefferson.
What are your opinions on money, power and this year’s candidates? If you want to know what you’re worth, check out Personal Capital’s net worth calculator.
