1
Leadership PACs and Campaign Contributions in the U.S. House of
Representatives
Over the past twenty-five years, the number of PACs sponsored by members of
Congress has grown considerably. These so-called “leadership PACs” may follow
strategies that emphasize the collective interests of their party, or they may focus more
narrowly on their sponsor’s own policy objectives. We examine contributions from
leadership PACs in the U.S. House of Representatives during 1983-1988 and 1995-2000.
Leadership PAC contributions flow mostly to candidates running in competitive elections
and are only somewhat based on ideological proximity between sponsors and candidates.
This result does not depend on whether majority control of the House is in doubt.