2026 candidate · follow the money
Who funds Derek Merrin?
The money.
- Raised
- $1.4M
- Spent
- $1.8M
- Cash on hand
- $449K
- Debts
- $37K
- Individuals 57% $804K
- PACs & other committees 20% $275K
- Party committees 0.4% $5,000
- Candidate's own money & loans 22% $310K
- Other receipts 0.3% $4,856
Campaign totals through Oct 14, 2026. Excludes $819K moved between the candidate's own committees.
Outside groups: $44K supporting · $1.7M opposing ($1.7M of it designated for the general election)
Biggest spenders supporting
Biggest spenders opposing
- HMP $1.7M
- AMERICAN RESOLVE PAC INC. $60K
- AMERICANS UNITED FOR VALUES $4,500
Largest direct PAC contributions
- AMERICAN REVIVAL PAC $10K
- GLASS CITY PAC $6,999
- NRCC $5,000
- HOUSE CONSERVATIVES FUND $5,000
- REPUBLICAN JEWISH COALITION POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE (RJC-PAC) $5,000
Who gave.
Who gives $804K from individuals
16% in small-dollar gifts
$125K of $804K came unitemized: from donors whose gifts to the campaign this cycle total $200 or less, whom the campaign does not have to name.
Summary through Oct 14, 2026. 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: $3.5M for / $5.6M against · $2.7M in the final two weeks
That is $7.3M more than the $1.8M in regular reports alone. Source: FEC regular reports plus 24- and 48-hour reports they do not yet cover. The final two weeks run Oct 21, 2026 to Nov 3, 2026, by the date each ad or mailing went out.
$5.2M of the $9.2M 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 54% $5.0M
- Digital ads 24% $2.2M
- Ads, medium not stated 2% $150K
- Mail, print & signs 14% $1.3M
- Phones & texts 2% $176K
- Canvassing & field 2% $143K
- Ad production 3% $256K
- Other or unclassified <0.1% $447
Largest late spenders for
Largest late spenders against
- HMP $5.2M
- EDW ACTION FUND $347K
- AMERICAN RESOLVE PAC INC. $77K
- OUR HERITAGE MATTERS $42K
- BUILDING TOGETHER $9,521
Latest dissemination on these reports: November 3, 2026. FEC 24- and 48-hour independent-expenditure reports read November 4, 2026, with amended and re-filed reports counted once (136 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 $19K in itemized spending
These itemized payments cover $19K of the $1.8M the campaign reported spending through Oct 14, 2026. The FEC has not yet itemized the rest in its bulk file, which runs to Jul 10, 2025.
- Advertising & outreach 12% $2,394
- Consultants & strategy 1% $250
- Fundraising & processing fees 13% $2,564
- Polling, research & data 33% $6,500
- Travel, meals & events 3% $553
- Office, technology & overhead 27% $5,267
- Legal & compliance 10% $1,950
Largest payees
- THE COEFFICIENT GROUP LLC $6,500
- ARISTOTLE INTERNATIONAL, INC $4,500
- POLITICOIN $2,458
- KEYSTONE PRESS $2,394
- RED CURVE SOLUTIONS, LLC $1,004
Paid to individuals: $553, such as staff, contractors and reimbursements. People who were paid are not named here.
Payments dated Jan 3, 2025 to Jul 10, 2025, as itemized by the principal campaign committee in FEC reports (29 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.
- Marcy M.C. KapturDemocrat · $5.0M raised · $3.8M outside
- Josh WilliamsRepublican · $975K raised · $45K outside
- Alea NadeemRepublican · $718K raised
- Madison SheahanRepublican · $186K raised · $45K outside
- Wayne Charles KinselRepublican · $91K raised
- Anthony Bruce CampbellRepublican · $34K raised
- Kathy McKinstryW · $0 raised
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.