The U.S. midterm elections are barely over and politicos are already looking at the next election cycle in 2024. The first candidates for the Republican presidential primary are expected to declare their candidacies soon. In addition, the entire House of Representatives and a third of the Senate will be up for grabs. Before we dive into this, however, I want to attract your attention to the absolutely staggering amount of money that was spent last fall.

According to the website open secrets, the most expensive Senate campaign last year was Pennsylvania with a total of $373,605,258 being spent. On a senate campaign.

Number two was Georgia with a total of $271,351,786 being spent, followed by Arizona: $234,577,515, Wisconsin $205,791,615 and, Ohio: $202,117,075.

When I was based in Washington D.C. some twenty years ago, $50 million was considered an expensive campaign (in a state like California or New York).

If you have been wondering why the U.S. has the most sophisticated and developed industry of political operatives, this is why. There’s a demand.

This trend is likely to continue. Presidential primary candidates will spend more in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina alone than what is spent in many other countries for a nationwide campaign altogether.