The Top 50 Political Donors of 2000

News: As money continues to pour into this year's political races at a record pace, we've been busy updating the Mother Jones 400, our list of the most generous individual donors in federal elections.

By Mother Jones staff

October 18, 2000

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Which wealthy contributors are giving the most to Al Gore and George W. Bush? As money continues to pour into this year's presidential and congressional races at a record pace, the staff at Mother Jones magazine has been busy preparing the next Mother Jones 400, our biannual list of the top campaign donors in federal elections. Our complete report on the biggest givers -- and what they're getting in return -- will appear after the election.

With the campaign entering its final days, we offer this preview of the 50 contributors currently at the top of the list, compiled by the nonprofit Center for Responsive Politics. So far, these 50 individuals and their immediate families have given nearly $24 million to federal candidates and political parties in the 1999-2000 election cycle. That's almost twice what the top 50 donors gave during the entire previous cycle.

Many of the biggest contributors this year, like Peter Buttenwieser and Carl Lindner, also topped the list in previous years. To see where these veteran donors and others on the Mother Jones 50 ranked in the past, click on their names in the list below.

The MoJo 50 (Key)

Rank	Donor	Total Contributions	Party	Organization	Last Election
1	Peter Buttenwieser & Terry Marek	$1,119,700		Buttenwieser & Associates	2
2	S. Daniel & Ewa Abraham	$1,108,500		Slim-Fast Foods/Thompson Medical	6
3	Carl H. & Edyth Lindner	$786,000		American Financial Group	4
4	Bernard L. & Irene Schwartz	$762,000		Loral Space & Communications	3
5	Richard T. & Joyce Farmer	$722,500		Cintas Corp	32
6	Peter G. & Georgia Angelos	$666,000		Angelos Law Offices/Baltimore Orioles	54
7	Sam & Marilyn Fox	$625,700		Harbour Group Ltd	36
8	Finn & Barbara Caspersen	$602,250		Knickerbocker Mgmt/Westby Management	N/A
9	Ian M. & Annette P. Cumming	$588,300		Leucadia National Corp/Cumming Fdtn	18
10	Fred Eychaner	$561,000		Newsweb Corp	15
11	Thomas E. & Paula McInerney	$544,500		Welsh, Carson et al	26
12	Alex G. & Faye Spanos	$540,500		AG Spanos Companies	N/A
13	John W. & Marlene Childs	$535,000		JW Childs Associates	5
14	Lawrence & Susan Kadish	$532,900		First Fiscal Fund	22
15	Michael J. & Elizabeth Perik	$531,000		Learning Co	N/A
16	Thomas F. & Barbara Stephenson	$528,200		Sequoia Capital	N/A
17	Meyer A. & Patricia N. Berman	$450,250		MA Berman Co	41
18	David S. & Sylvia L. Steiner	$440,400		Steiner Equities Group	10
19	A. Jerrold & Margaret Perenchio	$438,500		Chartwell Partners	190
20	Samuel J. & Ronnie F. Heyman	$435,970		GAF Corp	N/A
21	Charles W. & Cantley M. Ergen	$427,250		EchoStar Communications	N/A
22	Vance K. & Darin Beth Opperman	$425,250		Key Investment Inc	N/A
23	Jon S. & Joanne D. Corzine	$423,575		US Senate Candidate/Land Developer	13
24	Dr. John M. & Josephine Templeton	$421,250		John Templeton Foundation	220
25	Max M. & Marjorie Fisher	$404,500		Fisher Group	313
26	Marc L. Andreessen	$398,000		Loudcloud Inc	N/A
27	Charles R. & Helen O. Schwab	$390,500		Charles Schwab & Co	N/A
28	Walter H. & Lydia Shorenstein	$386,148		Shorenstein Co	12
29	David H. & Julia F. Koch	$378,500		Koch Industries	21
30	Bren & Melvin Simon	$375,350		Simon Property Group/MBS Inc	205
31	James V. Kimsey	$371,350		America Online	N/A
32	Philip Levine	$371,000		Onboard Media	N/A
33	Marc & Jane Nathanson	$367,500		Charter Communications, Inc.	321
34	John A. & Virginia M. Kaneb	$366,600		Gulf Oil	363
35	John & Marcia Price	$361,550		JP Realty	N/A
36	Kenneth L. & Linda P. Lay	$361,050		Enron Corp	188
37	Larry & Kathy Addington	$360,500		AEI Resources	N/A
38	Robert & Ginger Green	$358,500		Investor	129
39	David J. Shimmon	$352,000		Kinetics Group	N/A
40	Louis & Ruth Weisbach	$349,605		HALO Branded Solutions	14
41	Cary C. Patterson	$335,000		Nix, Patterson & Roach	137
42	John W. & Rosemary Galbraith	$330,250		Templeton Emerging Market Fund	53
43	C. Michael & Elizabeth Kojaian	$329,850		Kojaian Companies	306
44	Norman J. & Mary Pattiz	$328,500		Westwood One	N/A
45	Charles J. Wyly, Jr.	$327,113		Investor	N/A
46	Ron & Janet Burkle	$327,000		Yucaipa Companies	80
47	Jack L. & Viki Thompson	$323,500		Retired/JD Edwards	N/A
48	Darlyn & Charles N. Davenport	$322,000		SeaWest Windpower	N/A
49	Robert J. Hiler	$319,500		Retired/Hiler Industries	23
50	John F. & Joan Hotchkis	$316,550		Ramajal LLC	N/A

Key to the Mother Jones 50 List Gives 75 percent or more to Democrats Gives 75 percent or more to Republicans Gives to both Democrats and Republicans

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