Outside groups reported $554M in the campaign's final week

This was the week of the November 3 election, and the biggest money story in the records was the last stretch of campaign spending. Three things stand out in the records: how much outside groups reported in the final week, how much of it went to a handful of Senate races, and the most expensive fight on California's ballot. At the end, the essays we published this week and the week ahead.

1. The final week: $554M

From October 27 to November 3, 2026, outside groups reported $554M in general-election independent expenditures, spread across 209 races and 390 groups. That is part of $1.20B dated in the last fifteen days of the campaign.

The timing is the surprise. More than three-quarters of the final week's money, 81%, is dated October 27 or October 28. The last three days, November 1 to 3, account for $15M. That does not by itself mean groups stopped spending: a notice is dated when a communication is first distributed, so one that runs for days can show up once, on the day it starts.

2. Where it went: the Senate

Senate races drew 52% of the final week's outside money, $288M, though they were 35 of the 470 federal races on the ballot. The eight races that drew the most were all Senate contests. The biggest spenders were House Majority PAC ($90M), WinSenate ($60M), Senate Leadership Fund ($51M) and Congressional Leadership Fund ($41M).

America PAC reported $18M in the final week. Separately, its FEC receipts show Elon Musk gave it $178M this cycle, through October 14. Super PAC money is pooled, so the records cannot tie his gifts to any particular expenditure.

3. Still arriving: $35M

Notices kept landing through and after Election Day. Filings the FEC received from November 2 to November 6 list $35M across 2,170 lines, including amendments to earlier notices. The complete picture, with each group's receipts as well as its spending, arrives with the post-general reports on December 3.

4. California: $170M against one tax

California voters decided 14 statewide measures on November 3. The 28 committees working on them raised $773M by the state's latest export. The costliest fight was Proposition 40, a one-time tax on billionaires. Committees opposing it raised $170M, about five times the $33M raised by the committee supporting it. The largest single source on the No side was Building a Better California, which gave $159M. The Yes committee also campaigned against Propositions 41 and 42, so not all of its money was about Proposition 40.

In the unofficial count, Proposition 40 was behind. Ballots are still being counted, and the state certifies results by December 11.

This week on Daily FTM

• November 5: Outside groups put $315M behind Paxton. Talarico won.
• November 6: AI super PACs spent 83% of their money in primaries

The week ahead

November 9: Congress returns for the lame-duck session. Stopgap funding runs out on December 11, and the year-end agenda includes spending bills, the defense bill, a tax package and health credits. Our lobbying pages and federal contracts tab show which companies report lobbying on those subjects.

Further out: the Georgia runoff on December 1 and the FEC post-general reports on December 3.

What this does and doesn't show

These records show when outside groups said their independent expenditures were first distributed, how much they reported, and in which races. They do not show whether any of it changed a result, and this roundup makes no such claim. Race totals combine money for and against each candidate. Notices filed late or amended after November 6 are not here, and spending that does not have to be reported as an independent expenditure (party coordinated spending, issue ads by nonprofits) is not counted at all. California figures are money raised, not spent, and the vote count is unofficial.