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Hugin

2026 candidate · follow the money

Who funds Ben McAdams?

Utah U.S. House District 1DemocratFiled as challengerFEC H8UT04053
Compare the whole race →Results in Utah ↗Search Hugin records ↗FEC filing ↗

The money.

Ben McAdamsFEC filing: Ben McAdams · H8UT04053 ↗
Raised
$2.7M
Spent
$2.5M
Cash on hand
$378K
  • Individuals 87% $2.4M
  • PACs & other committees 13% $342K
  • Other receipts <0.1% $2,703

Campaign totals through Oct 14, 2026. Excludes $90K moved between the candidate's own committees.

Outside groups: $2.7M supporting · $0 opposing

Biggest spenders supporting

  1. THINK BIGSuper PACSpent mainly in primaries $1.1M
  2. NEW DEMOCRAT MAJORITYSuper PACSpent mainly in primaries $1.0M
  3. AMERICA'S CREDIT UNIONS PACTrade association PAC · America'S Credit UnionsSpent mainly in primaries $300K
  4. ARTICLE ONE PACHybrid PAC (super PAC account)Spent mainly in primaries $215K
  5. WELCOMEPACHybrid PAC (super PAC account)Spent mainly in primaries $23K

Largest direct PAC contributions

  1. AMERICAN BANKERS ASSOCIATION PAC (BANKPAC)Trade association PAC · American Bankers Association (aba) $10K
  2. AMERICAN ASSOCIATION FOR JUSTICE POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (AAJ PAC)Membership group PAC · American Association For Justice (aaj) $10K
  3. NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEEMembership group PAC · National Association Of Realtors $10K
  4. NEW YORK LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEECorporate PAC · New York Life Insurance Company $10K
  5. AMERIPAC: THE FUND FOR A GREATER AMERICALeadership PAC of Steny Hoyer $10K

Who gave.

Who gives $2.4M from individuals

13% in small-dollar gifts

$300K of $2.4M came unitemized: from donors whose gifts to the campaign this cycle total $200 or less, whom the campaign does not have to name.

The itemized gifts below add up to $1.7M of the $2.1M the campaign reported itemizing through Oct 14, 2026. The FEC has not yet processed the rest into its bulk file, which runs to Jun 30, 2026 for this campaign.

76% from Utah · 24% from elsewhere

Of itemized gifts, by the state on each donor's mailing address; $1,000 had no usable state. Giving from other states is lawful and common.

60% of itemized dollars came earmarked through a conduit such as ActBlue or WinRed; each gift is counted once.

Top states

  1. Utah $1.3M
  2. California $108K
  3. New York $69K
  4. District of Columbia $48K
  5. Texas $32K
  6. Maryland $20K
  7. Washington $18K
  8. Massachusetts $17K

Top employers named by donors

  1. UNIVERSITY OF UTAH $38K
  2. CELTIC BANK $14K
  3. INTERMOUNTAIN HEALTHCARE $13K
  4. JANE STREET $9,222
  5. SALT LAKE CITY CORP $4,650
  6. GOOGLE $4,638
  7. INTERMOUNTAIN HEALTH $3,825
  8. AMERICA FIRST CREDIT UNION $3,500
  9. SALT LAKE COUNTY $3,000
  10. TIBER CREEK GROUP $3,000

Employers as donors wrote them on the form. A company listed here did not give this money; people who work there did.

Retired, self-employed, not employed or not given: $818K. Employers named by fewer than three donors, or filed as a person's name: $818K, not listed so no one donor is singled out.

Summary through Oct 14, 2026. Itemized gifts dated Oct 15, 2025 to Jun 30, 2026, net of refunds (1,606 entries). Every itemized contribution on FEC.gov ↗

From the principal campaign committee's FEC reports; joint-fundraising transfers and later reports are not included, and no donor is named here. A contribution is not evidence of a vote, favor or wrongdoing.

Outside money in the final weeks.

Outside spending including late reports: $2.7M for / $0 against · $0 in the final two weeks

Source: FEC regular reports. The final two weeks run Oct 21, 2026 to Nov 3, 2026, by the date each ad or mailing went out.

$1.2M of the $2.4M on late reports was filed as an estimate. A 24- or 48-hour report is due within a day or two of the spending; the spender's later regular report carries the final cost.

What it bought, per the late reports

  • TV, radio & streaming TV 85% $2.0M
  • Digital ads 13% $298K
  • Mail, print & signs 0.6% $15K
  • Phones & texts 2% $45K
  • Ad production 0.5% $11K
  • Other or unclassified <0.1% $912

Largest late spenders for

  1. THINK BIG $1.1M
  2. NEW DEMOCRAT MAJORITY $1.0M
  3. ARTICLE ONE PAC $196K
  4. WELCOMEPAC $23K
  5. WAY BACK PAC $22K

Latest dissemination on these reports: June 22, 2026. FEC 24- and 48-hour independent-expenditure reports read November 4, 2026, with amended and re-filed reports counted once (31 entries). These reports on FEC.gov ↗

Outside spending is, by law, made without coordinating with the candidate and is not the candidate's money. Purposes are grouped from each spender's own description, so the groups are approximate. A dollar figure is not evidence of a vote, favor or wrongdoing.

Where it went.

Where the money went $2.0M in itemized spending

These itemized payments cover $2.0M of the $2.5M the campaign reported spending through Oct 14, 2026. The FEC has not yet itemized the rest in its bulk file, which runs to Jun 30, 2026.

  • Advertising & outreach 46% $912K
  • Consultants & strategy 13% $253K
  • Staff & payroll 11% $210K
  • Fundraising & processing fees 9% $179K
  • Polling, research & data 7% $131K
  • Travel, meals & events 0.3% $6,392
  • Office, technology & overhead 2% $40K
  • Legal & compliance 10% $192K
  • Other or unclassified 2% $44K

Largest payees

  1. OLD TOWN MEDIA LLC $598K
  2. SB DIGITAL, INC. $322K
  3. LANDSLIDE POLITICAL $158K
  4. IMPACT RESEARCH, INC. $127K
  5. THE STRATEGY GROUP $116K

Paid to individuals: $174K, such as staff, contractors and reimbursements. People who were paid are not named here.

Payments dated Oct 22, 2025 to Jun 30, 2026, as itemized by the principal campaign committee in FEC reports (339 entries). Every payment on FEC.gov ↗

Grouped by each campaign's own description of the payment, so the groups are approximate. Payments of $200 or less to one payee need not be itemized, detail filed only as memo entries counts under other or unclassified, and spending by the candidate's other committees or by outside groups is not included. A payment is not evidence of a favor or wrongdoing.

Others who filed for this seat.

Questions worth asking.

Money shows who backed a campaign, not how a person will act. Compare it with what they did and said: their votes or official actions if they have held office, their own statements, and their answers to a finding. Use the same questions for every candidate.

FEC bulk data read November 4, 2026. Campaign totals come from each filing's own FEC summary through its latest processed report. Outside spending is independent expenditures itemized in committee reports in the FEC bulk files, primaries included; late 24- and 48-hour reports, party coordinated spending, communication costs and groups that do not report to the FEC are not included. Outside spending is, by law, made without coordinating with the candidate, and it is not the candidate's money. A contribution or expenditure is not evidence of a vote, favor or wrongdoing. This page identifies the filing by its FEC candidate ID; a person can hold more than one filing.