Political contributions? In this economy??

Key Takeaways

• Donating is one of several ways to support a candidate, but with affordability at the top of pressing voter issues, individuals are already having to make tough financial decisions.

• Two Supreme Court rulings have expanded how much money corporations, wealthy individuals, and party committees can spend to support a candidate.

• Minnesota refunds political contributions dollar-for-dollar (up to $75 for an individual or $150 for a married couple filing jointly) for gifts to state candidates and parties.

Every campaign, from city council to governor, runs on money. Candidates use it for mail, staff, travel, and advertising, and for years most of those funds have come from individual donors giving relatively small amounts.

A recent Supreme Court ruling, however, has changed the rules about how much money can go into a campaign. The ruling favors corporations and wealthy donors, while laws still limit what an individual can give directly. This means a political party can now spend as much as it wants working hand-in-hand with its own candidate. A corporation or a wealthy donor can spend as much as they want on their own. But a regular person giving straight to that candidate? Their donation is still capped at a few thousand dollars.

Everyday donors are being outpaced.

How two Supreme Court rulings radically changed campaign finance

In 2010, Citizens United v. Federal Elections Committee held that corporations, unions, and wealthy individuals can spend unlimited amounts on their own — independent of a candidate's campaign — to support or oppose that candidate. That's the basis for how super PACs operate today.

On June 30, 2026, the Supreme Court went a step further in a case called National Republican Senatorial Committee vs. Federal Elections Committee. This ruling erased the limit on how much a political party can spend working directly with its own candidate's campaign.

What this looks like in practice

Say you're running for U.S. Senate in Minnesota. Your party used to be allowed to spend money working hand-in-hand with your campaign, but only up to a set amount. For 2026, that amount topped out around $4 million. A candidate running for president had a higher ceiling, around $32.4 million.

After the rulling, those limits are gone. A party can spend as much as it wants to when working directly with its own candidate's campaign, in addition to whatever outside groups spend on their own.

The restrictions on that outside spending were already loosened over 15 years ago, when the Supreme Court decided Citizens United. That ruling said corporations, unions, and wealthy individuals can spend unlimited money on their own — separate from a candidate's campaign — to support or oppose that candidate. It's the reason super PACs (political action committees) exist and can raise and spend without a cap, as long as they aren't formally coordinating with the campaign itself.

A corporation or a billionaire can now for a put unlimited money behind a preferred candidate through outside spending or party coordination.

A person writing a check to that same candidate is still capped.

What ordinary Americans can do

Against that backdrop, small contributions from an individuals are still one of the most direct ways for ordinary Americans to back a candidate or local political organizing unit.

A recurring $10 or $20 monthly donation doesn't look like much on its own, but multiplied across thousands of donors over the length of a campaign, it adds up to real money — enough to fund a competitive campaign without a single check from a corporation or a wealthy donor. It's part of why so many campaigns now default to recurring donations instead of one-time gifts: a smaller amount sustained over months can outpace fewer, much larger checks.

Other ways to help

• Volunteering covers work that money alone can't, such as phone banking, data entry, and door-knocking among them. (See What do volunteers actually do? for a full breakdown of roles.)

• Canvassing specifically has a measurable effect on turnout; a face-to-face conversation at the door changes outcomes in ways a mailer doesn't. (See What is canvassing, and why does it work?)

• Voting is the baseline lever everyone has, regardless of what else they can give..

How Minnesota's Political Contribution Refund program empowers regular citizens

The Political Contribution Refund (PCR) is a state program that reimburses individuals for political contributions, in full, up to a set cap. You get a receipt and a form from the campaign, mail it to the state, and the state sends your money back.

Who qualifies for the PCR refund in Minnesota?

You need to be a U.S. citizen, at least 18, and a Minnesota resident who lived in the state for at least 20 days before the relevant election, and you need to be registered to vote or eligible to register.

How much can you get back from the Minnesota PCR program?

Up to $75 per year for an individual, or $150 for a married couple filing a joint application.

Which races does the PCR program cover?

Contributions to a recognized political party or to a candidate for governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, secretary of state, state auditor, state senator, or state representative — as long as the candidate has signed a public subsidy agreement before accepting the contribution. Federal races (Congress, president) aren't eligible.

What's the actual process for getting your PCR Refund from the state of Minnesota?

After donating, the campaign sends you a signed receipt (Form EP-3). Once you have all your receipts for the year, you file them together with a single Form PCR application. Only one application per calendar year is allowed, so it needs to include every contribution you're claiming.

What are the deadlines for filing your PCR refund application?

Processing typically takes four to six weeks, but can be faster with direct deposit. The deadline to file for 2026 contributions is April 15, 2027, with no extensions, and an application can't be amended once submitted.

For anyone who wants to support a candidate financially without it being a real financial hit, this is the mechanism that makes that possible. For the official forms and the most current instructions, the Minnesota Department of Revenue's PCR page is the source to use.