U.S. Midterm Elections See Record-Breaking Campaign Spending, Expected to Exceed 37 Trillion Baht - Thairath English

A political finance watchdog predicts that this year's U.S. midterm election campaign spending will total nearly $12 billion, about 30% higher than the 2022 elections.

On 3 Nov 2026 GMT+7, OpenSecrets, an independent organization tracking election finance data, revealed that this year's U.S. midterm election campaign is likely to have the highest budget ever, with total expenditures expected to approach $12 billion or roughly 370 billion baht.

OpenSecrets estimates that campaign spending will reach approximately $11.9 billion, about 30% more than in the 2022 midterm elections, making this the most expensive midterm election in history.

They also disclosed that the largest individual donor is billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, who has spent nearly $500 million supporting Republican candidates, particularly in Texas, where many of his companies are based. Much of this funding is driven by outside political groups known as Super PACs, which raise and spend large sums to support candidates in key districts ahead of the election.

The latest data from the U.S. Federal Election Commission (FEC), covering up to mid-October, shows that over $9.5 billion has already been spent in this midterm cycle. PACs and Super PACs account for more than half of this total—about $5.5 billion—and their spending has nearly doubled in the past two months.

U.S. law sets limits on direct donations from individuals, political parties, and political action committees (PACs) to candidates. However, Super PACs can accept unlimited contributions from individuals, corporations, labor unions, and other political committees. Although these groups cannot donate directly to candidates, they may spend funds to indirectly support them.