Concerns that interest groups distort democracy with campaign money are longstanding. Yet, only 5% of U.S. publicly traded firms contribute at all.

Surprising Findings

• 95% of these firms never donate to political campaigns
• Interest groups focus on indirect access rather than direct contributions

New Data & Methods

We analyzed over 440,000 candidate–committee observations across U.S. state legislatures from 1988-2014.

Using difference-in-differences designs based on changes in individual legislators' procedural powers,

we tracked how interest groups adjust their financial strategies as politicians gain influence.

What This Means

This sophisticated approach shows how interest groups strategically shift support to maximize policy influence indirectly.