NEWS

$147 Million Spent on California’s Nov. Ballot Measures

Jeffrey ErnstFriedman | November 05, 2010

Nov 5, 2010 - On the nine state-wide measures on the Nov. 2, 2010 ballot, supporters and opponents spent a combined $147 million trying to sway public opinion. Topping the list is Charles T. Munger, Jr. and his wife, Charlotte A. Lowell, with the couple putting in over $12.6 million. Not far behind is the California Teachers Association with $11.5 million. In total, 40 individuals and organizations gave $1,000,000 or more.

The Top Five

  • Charles T. Munger, Jr. / Charlotte A. Lowell gave $12,633,523 to Yes on 20 | No on 27
  • California Teachers Association gave $11,503,624 to No on 22, 23 & 26 | Yes on 24 & 25
  • Thomas Steyer/Kathryn Taylor gave $6,099,000 to No on 23 & 26
  • Valero Services, Inc.  gave $5,075,315 to Yes on 23
  • California Chamber of Commerce gave $4,063,323 to No on 19, 24, 25 & 27 | Yes on 20 & 26

Below is a list of all contributors (individuals and organizations) that gave $1,000,000 or more to ballot initiatives this year. Click here to download a spreadsheet to see which outcomes contributors were trying to influence. Click here to access the individual breakdowns of the November ballot measures. Totals are based on the latest campaign finance totals published by the California Secretary of State, the final disclosure deadline is late January 2011.


ContributorTotal Contributions ($146,977,333.49)
Charles T. Munger, Jr. & Charlotte A. Lowell$12,633,523
California Teachers Association$11,503,624
Thomas Steyer & Kathryn Taylor$6,099,000
Valero Services, Inc.$5,075,315
California Chamber of Commerce$4,063,323
Chevron Corporation$3,750,000
League Of California Cities$3,532,750
California Federation of Teachers$3,312,240
The Nature Conservancy$3,026,489
National Wildlife Federation$3,000,000
American Federation of State County & Municipal Employees  
$2,763,543
L. John & Ann Doerr$2,500,000
American Beverage Association$2,450,000
Philip Morris USA Inc.$2,250,000
National Education Association$2,200,000
America's Families First, Inc.$2,150,000
American Federation of Teachers$2,075,000
Democratic State Central Committee of California$2,053,057
Tesoro Companies$2,040,637
Haim Saban$2,032,151
Genentech, Inc.$1,600,500
Cisco Systems, Inc.$1,600,000
Viacom Inc.$1,600,000
Oaksterdam University$1,528,932
General Electric Company$1,500,000
Time Warner$1,500,000
The Walt Disney Company$1,400,000
Fox Group, a Division of News America Inc.$1,325,000
California School Employees Association$1,280,000
CBS Corporation$1,250,000
California State Council of Service Employees$1,250,000
League of Conservation Voters$1,250,000
Alliance for a Better California 2010$1,112,262
Robert J. Fisher$1,105,000
George Soros$1,100,000
Vinod Khosla$1,037,267
Flint Hills Resources$1,000,000
Gordon Moore$1,000,000
James Cameron$1,000,000
Qualcomm Incorporated$1,000,000

Final contribution totals will not be made available until the end of January 2011. Between each filing deadline, campaign committees are only required to file contributions of $1,000 or more so figures will rise when all totals are considered.