Programming note: This will be our final newsletter of 2025. But before we sign off, we are taking a look back at the many ways the American public relied on our data to follow the money. And while the holidays are a time for family and friends, they are also big business, so we broke down this year's lobbying spending by key industries active during Christmas and New Year's. Plus, take our dark money quiz and see how much you know about the secretive dollars powering elections.

Our version of Spotify’s year-end roundup does not include Taylor Swift, Bad Bunny or Sabrina Carpenter. But it does include a treasure trove of data and analysis that we published in 2025.

Here are some of our greatest hits from the past 12 months.

By far, our most popular news story of 2025 listed the individual who gave the most money to candidates, political parties and, especially, super PACs during the 2024 election cycle. Our money-in-politics profiles of key Trump administration figures also proved to be very popular.

Everyone wanted to know who gave the most money to President Donald Trump’s campaign and affiliated outside groups. Data related to Israel and health care/pharmaceuticals was in high demand, and people continue to be fascinated by the net worth of members of Congress.

‘Tis the season of giving, and Christmas-related businesses are spending millions in the hope that Congress, if not Santa Claus, will deliver on their priorities. 

That includes companies whose products fill up the holiday table, manufacturers that make toys to be found under the tree, and the network behind the day-long slate of professional basketball games.

“The brilliance of the Constitution is that every citizen has a right to petition the government,” said Ben Dworkin, director of Rowan University’s Institute for Public Policy and Citizenship. “If there are those who are working on behalf of their industry and their livelihoods to advocate in some way for legislation that will benefit them, there’s no difference whether it’s related to the holiday season or any other season. This is what America in its greatness allows: a citizen to petition the government.’’

Jonathan D. Salant reports on what some of the familiar names at Christmastime have spent on lobbying between Jan. 1 and Sept. 30 of this year.

OpenSecrets has spent more than 40 years following the money. But over the past 15 years, our work has become considerably more difficult due to the rise of “dark money.”

Many Americans do not understand dark money or how it impacts elections. Take our quiz to see where you stand. And maybe you’ll learn something new about election transparency along the way. 

We are now in the final month of our biggest fundraiser of the year: NewsMatch, a nationwide campaign to support nonprofit journalism. There’s never been a more critical time to protect independent newsrooms like ours — newsrooms that provide an essential public service to the American people. 

From now until Dec. 31, we have an opportunity to boost the impact of donations to OpenSecrets, which will help power our newsroom into 2026. Here’s how it works: 

NewsMatch will match your new monthly donation 12 times or doubleyour one-time gift, for new gifts up to $1,000.

If you’ve been thinking about becoming a donor to OpenSecrets or want to double your gift this year, this is the best time to do it. Your support will get our NewsMatch campaign off to a solid start and help keep us going strong.

Hundreds of Big Post-Election Donors Have Benefited From Trump’s Return to Office (The New York Times)

Conservative groups push back on Maine law in latest campaign finance court battle filing (Maine Morning Star)

Why do California cities, counties pay millions to lobby their own statehouse? (The Sacramento Bee)

Who paid for an ad pushing Cleveland schools consolidation? It's a mystery (News 5 Cleveland)

Who is Jared Isaacman, the billionaire SpaceX astronaut who has been confirmed as the new head of NASA? (Business Insider)

Trump said he was dropping Isaacman's nomination on May 31 in a post on Truth Social, after a "thorough review of prior associations." He also said that he would soon announce a new, "mission aligned" nominee. Isaacman had donated to Democratic candidates throughout his career up until the 2024 election, according to OpenSecrets. 

AOC didn't spend $50K on Bad Bunny concert. Here's how her campaign really spent the money (Snopes)

Ultimately, this represented a drop in the bucket of the representative's campaign's spending portfolio. From July to September alone, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez for Congress raised nearly $4.5 million and spent almost $2.5 million. According to OpenSecrets, a nonprofit that tracks money in politics, Ocasio-Cortez was the fifth-highest spender during the 2023 to 2024 election cycle among U.S. House members. 

Mandela Barnes called early Democratic front-runner, but Wisconsin governor’s race could be ‘wide open’ (Wisconsin Watch)

Barnes’ campaign staff blamed the 2022 results in part on insufficient support from national Democrats to match outside spending by Republicans on attack ads — though some, like Burden, question whether money would have “made a difference.” The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee donated $51,200 to his campaign in 2022 — the same amount they gave to nine other Senate candidates, per Open Secrets.

Musk-Linked ‘Dark Money’ Group Got a $75 Million Anonymous Donation (Sludge)

Project 2028 was run by IMGE LLC, according to OpenSecrets, a public relations firm where Cox is a senior partner. IMGE LLC also worked in 2024 with Musk’s America PAC and several super PACs that were funded by Building America’s Future. In 2024, Building America’s Future paid IMGE LLC $14.4 million for “data acquisition/digital,” according to the filing.  

Stock trading is lucrative business for Congress (The Washington Times)

As David Meyers with OpenSecrets said: The American people, by a vast majority, want bans on congressional stock trades. But it’s tough to get Congress aboard a true ban. That’s because, as he pointed out, congressional members are their own watchdogs.  

Kick off 2026 in style, and with meaning. Every purchase from our merch store directly supports our work to provide trustworthy data, analysis and tools for policymakers, journalists and engaged citizens.

Our debut collection includes a hoodie, crewneck, t-shirt and hat, all designed to spark conversation and show your commitment to transparency. And you can feel good about your purchase: every item is made by a certified ethical, sweat-free manufacturer.

Wear your values — and give a gift that makes a difference.