Candidates targeted
30
races with outside spending
pac · VA
NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA
An outside-spending committee: $10.2M in independent expenditures ($6.2M supporting, $3.8M opposing candidates) - reported to the FEC, and by law not contributions to any campaign.
- $10.2M
- Independent expenditures
- $6.2M
- Supporting
- $3.8M
- Opposing
- $610K
- Contributions
The verdict
NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA is an outside-spending committee: it made $10.2M in independent expenditures across 30 candidates, mostly supporting ($6.2M).
- $6.2M
- spent supporting candidates
- $3.8M
- spent opposing candidates
- $610K
- direct contributions
Supporting
$6.2M
independent expenditures for
Opposing
$3.8M
independent expenditures against
Independent expenditures by NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA
Money this committee spent independently to support or oppose candidates, reported to the FEC, and by law not contributions to any campaign and not coordinated with it.
- $10.2M
- Total outside spending
- $6.2M
- Supporting
- $3.8M
- Opposing
| Candidate | Supporting | Opposing |
|---|---|---|
| Donald J. Trump | $2.2M | - |
| Kamala Harris | - | $1.8M |
| Dave Mccormick | $1.3M | - |
| Tim Sheehy | $1.1M | - |
| R. Jon Tester | - | $951K |
| Sherrod Brown | - | $949K |
| Bernie Moreno | $617K | - |
| Michael J Rogers | $87K | - |
| Kari Lake | $77K | - |
| Rafael Edward Ted Cruz | $67K | - |
| Rob Bresnahan | $59K | - |
| Ryan Edward Mackenzie | $59K | - |
| Thomas More Barrett | $58K | - |
| Austin Leo Theriault | $57K | - |
| Laurie Buckhout | $56K | - |
| Derek Merrin | $55K | - |
| Timothy Gabriel Joseph Evans | $55K | - |
| Stella Yvette Herrell | $55K | - |
| Kevin Coughlin | $55K | - |
| Eric Hovde | $51K | - |
How NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA's federal influence breaks down
The three tracked channels for NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA, side by side. Its largest channel is lobbying expenditures at $4.3M.
Lobbying share of total influence 87.7%
Higher share = lobbying-heavy strategy vs. contributions or contracts
What NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA's influence footprint shows
NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA is an outside-spending committee: rather than contributing to candidates' committees, it reported $10.2M in independent expenditures to the Federal Election Commission - $6.2M advocating for candidates and $3.8M opposing them, across 30 races. By law these expenditures are made independently of, and uncoordinated with, any campaign, and they are not subject to contribution limits, which is how a single committee can deploy this scale of money. They are reported here separately from contributions because they are a fundamentally different mechanism of political influence.
On the campaign side, NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA's PAC contributions reached 50 federal politicians, led by Tim Sheehy at $10K. Its lobbying profile spans 2 reporting years across 5 distinct LDA issue areas, with emphasis on Civil Rights/Civil Liberties, Law Enforcement/Crime/Criminal Justice, Firearms/Guns/Ammunition.
Viewing contributions, lobbying, and contracts side-by-side is the key to reading this organization's relationship with the federal government: campaign giving signals which lawmakers are prioritized, lobbying expenditures signal which policy outcomes are being pursued, and contract awards signal where procurement decisions have already landed. Each component is independently sourced from official government disclosures covering the 2023-2024 period.
Politicians supported
Top recipients of NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA PAC contributions · FEC (2024 cycle)
Lobbying by year
| Year | Amount |
|---|---|
| 2024 | $2.0M |
| 2023 | $2.3M |
Lobbying issues
Frequently asked questions
How much political influence does NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA have?
NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA has a combined political influence footprint of $5.0M, which includes $610K in campaign contributions, $4.3M in lobbying expenditures, and $0 in federal contracts. This data comes from FEC filings, Senate LDA disclosures, and USAspending.gov records for 2023-2024.
Which politicians does NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA support?
NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA contributed $610K to political campaigns during the 2024 election cycle through its PAC. NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA supported 50 politicians, with the largest contribution going to Tim Sheehy ($10K). All contribution data is sourced from Federal Election Commission filings.
What issues does NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA lobby on?
NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA spent $4.3M on federal lobbying. Key issue areas include Civil Rights/Civil Liberties, Law Enforcement/Crime/Criminal Justice, Firearms/Guns/Ammunition. Lobbying disclosures are filed under the Senate Lobbying Disclosure Act (LDA) and are public record.
Where does the data about NATIONAL RIFLE ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA come from?
PlainInfluence aggregates data from three federal sources: the Federal Election Commission (FEC) for campaign contributions, the Senate Office of Public Records for lobbying disclosures under the Lobbying Disclosure Act, and USAspending.gov for federal contract awards. Data covers the 2023-2024 reporting period.
What is "total influence" and how is it calculated?
Total influence is the sum of an organization's campaign contributions, lobbying spending, and federal contract values. It provides a single metric for comparing the overall political and economic footprint of organizations in the federal arena. Each component is independently sourced from official government filings.
Related guides
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified. Verify the underlying filings at fec.gov/data.
Data sourced from official public datasets. See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainInfluence Editorial.