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Campaign finance requirements in Wisconsin
 in Wisconsin |
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Federal campaign finance laws and regulations |
|---|
| Campaign finance reform |
| History of campaign finance reform |
| State by state comparison of campaign finance reporting requirements |
| Election policy |
| State information |
Campaign finance requirements govern how much money candidates and campaigns may receive from individuals and organizations, how they must report those contributions, and how much individuals, organizations, and political parties may contribute to campaigns. In addition to direct campaign contributions, campaign finance laws also apply to third-party organizations and nonprofit organizations that seek to influence elections through independent expenditures or issue advocacy.
This page provides background on campaign finance regulation, lists contribution limits to state candidates and ballot measures in Wisconsin, compares contribution limits to gubernatorial and state legislative candidates in Wisconsin with those from other states, and details the candidate reporting requirements in Wisconsin.
The information on this page pertains to candidates for state office and state ballot measures. Candidates for federal office are subject to federal campaign finance law. Candidates for local office are subject to all applicable state laws as well as any separate local campaign finance regulations.[1]
Background
The Federal Election Commission (FEC) is the independent regulatory agency responsible for administering and enforcing federal campaign election laws. The FEC is responsible for disclosing campaign finance information, enforcing limits and prohibitions on contributions and the oversight of the public funding of presidential elections.[2] According to the FEC, an individual becomes a federal candidate, and must begin to report their campaign finances, once he or she has either raised or spent $5,000 in pursuit of his or her campaign. Within fifteen days of this benchmark for status as a candidate, the candidate must register with the FEC and designate an official campaign committee, to be responsible for the funds and expenditures of the campaign. This committee must have an official treasurer, and cannot support any candidate but the one who registered the committee. Detailed financial reports are then made to the FEC every financial quarter after the individual is registered with the FEC. Reports are also made before primaries and before the general election.[3]
The rules governing federal election campaigns and contributions have evolved over the past generation as result of a number of Supreme Court decisions. In the 2010 Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission decision, the court held that corporate funding of independent political broadcasts in candidate elections cannot be limited. The court's decision also overturned the ban on for-profit and not-for-profit corporations and unions broadcasting electioneering communications in the 30 days before a presidential primary and in the 60 days before a general election.[4] In the SpeechNOW.org v. Federal Election Commission decision, the first application of the Citizens United decision, the court held that contribution limits on what individuals could give to independent expenditure-only groups, and the amount these organizations could receive, were unconstitutional. Contribution limits on donations directly to candidates, however, remain constitutional.[5][6] In 2014's McCutcheon v. Federal Election Commission decision, the court overturned biennial aggregate campaign contribution limits, and held that individuals may now contribute to as many federal candidates as they want, but may only contribute up to the federal limit in each case.[7]
While the FEC governs federal election campaigns and contribution limits, individual states require their own level of regulation and reporting. The amount of regulation required differs by state, as do the limits on campaign contributions and third-party activities to influence elections. Candidates for local office must follow any applicable state and local campaign finance regulations.
Contribution limits
The table below details contribution limits as they applied to various types of individuals and groups in Wisconsin as of August 2025. The uppermost row of the table indicates the contributor, while the leftmost column indicates the recipient.
| Office | Individuals | PACs | Political Party | Super PACs | Corporations | Unions | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governor | $20,000 | $86,000 | unlimited | $0 | $0 | $0 | |||
| State senator | $2,000 | $2,000 | unlimited | $0 | $0 | $0 | |||
| State representative | $1,000 | $1,000 | unlimited | $0 | $0 | $0 | |||
| PACs | unlimited | unlimited | unlimited | $0 | $0 | $0 | |||
| Party committees | unlimited | $12,000 | unlimited | $0 | $0 | $0 | |||
| Ballot measures | unlimited | unlimited | unlimited | $0 | unlimited | unlimited | |||
| Limits apply per election campaign, except for PAC contributions to party committees, which apply per calendar year. | |||||||||
| Sources: State of Wisconsin Ethics Commission, "Campaign Finance: Contribution Limits," accessed August 17, 2025 | |||||||||
State comparisons in the 2024 elections
Candidate reporting requirements
See statutes: Wisconsin Statutes and Annotations, Chapter 11
In Wisconsin a state-level candidate for election to public office must register with the Wisconsin Ethics Commission. After filing a campaign registration statement, a candidate may begin receiving and disbursing campaign funds. Each candidate must have a single depository account into which all contributions will be deposited and from which all expenditures will be made.[9]
Exemptions
A candidate may be exempted from reporting requirements if his or her campaign will not accept contributions, make expenditures, or incur obligations in an aggregate amount exceeding $2,500 per calendar year (including the candidate's own contributions).[10]
Financial disclosure
A candidate committee must file regular disclosure reports until the committee terminates its registration. Reports generally include the following types of information:[9][11]
- Receipts
- All receipts must be itemized. The contributor's name and address must be included, as well as the date and amount of the contribution. A single contribution or cumulative contribution from the same source exceeding $200 must also include the contributor's occupation.
- Expenditures
- Expenditures totaling $20 or less are reported as aggregate totals. An expenditure greater than $20 must be itemized. The name and address of the person or business to whom the expenditure was made must be noted, as well as the date, amount, and purpose of the payment.
- Incurred obligations
- An itemized statement of every obligation exceeding $20 in amount or value must be reported. The name of the person or business to whom the obligation was incurred must be noted, as well as the date, amount, and purpose of the obligation.
- Loans
- Each loan of money made to the candidate committee in an aggregate amount or value in excess of $20 must be reported. The following must be noted: full name and mailing address of the lender; a statement of whether the lender is a commercial lending institution; the date and amount of the loan; the full name and mailing address of each guarantor, if any; the original amount guaranteed by each guarantor; and the balance of the amount guaranteed by each guarantor at the end of the reporting period.
Report timing
A candidate committee must file pre-primary and pre-general election reports, each due eight days before the applicable election. A committee must also file continuing reports in January and July of each year until it dissolves.[9]
A candidate committee must file special reports within 72 hours of receipt for contributions of $1,000 or more (or contributions from a single source totaling $1,000 or more) received in the 14-day period before the primary or general election (including a candidate's own contributions).[12]
Termination
A candidate committee can terminate its registration only if it meets all of the following criteria:[9]
- The committee determines that all financial activity will stop and that the committee will no longer receive contributions, make disbursements, or incur obligations.
- The committee files a termination report showing that all obligations have been paid or satisfied and that the campaign's cash balance has been eliminated.
- The committee completes the requisite termination request form.
Campaign finance legislation
The table below displays bills related to campaign finance introduced during or carried over to Wisconsin's current legislative session.[13]
Election and campaign ballot measures
Ballotpedia has tracked 2 statewide ballot measures relating to elections and campaigns.
- Wisconsin Question 1, Ban on Private and Non-Governmental Funding of Election Administration Amendment (April 2024)
- Wisconsin Question 2, Only Designated Election Officials to Conduct Elections Amendment (April 2024)
Election administration agencies
Election agencies
- See also: State election agencies
Individuals seeking additional information about election administration in Wisconsin can contact the following local, state, and federal agencies.
Wisconsin County Clerks
Wisconsin Elections Commission
- Physical Address: 201 West Washington Avenue, Second Floor
- Madison, Wisconsin 53703
- Mailing Address: P.O. Box 7984
- Madison, Wisconsin 53707-7984
- Phone: 608-266-8005
- Toll free: 1-866-VOTE-WIS
- Fax: 608-267-0500
- Email: elections@wi.gov
- Website: https://myvote.wi.gov/en-us/
U.S. Election Assistance Commission
- 633 3rd Street NW, Suite 200
- Washington, DC 20001
- Phone: 301-563-3919
- Toll free: 1-866-747-1471
- Email: clearinghouse@eac.gov
- Website: https://www.eac.gov
Federal Election Commission (FEC)
- 1050 First Street, NE
- Washington, DC 20463
- Telephone: (202)-694-1100
- Toll-free: 1-800-424-9530
- Email: info@fec.gov
- Website: http://www.fec.gov/
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Wisconsin Campaign Finance. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
- Campaign finance regulation
- Wisconsin
- Government Accountability Board
- John Doe investigations related to Scott Walker
Footnotes
- ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "Campaign Finance Enforcement," accessed May 28, 2025
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "About the FEC," accessed June 27, 2012
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Candidate Registration Brochure," accessed December 7, 2012
- ↑ New York Times, "Justices, 5-4, Reject Corporate Spending Limit," January 21, 2010
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Speechnow.org v. FEC," April 7, 2014
- ↑ OpenSecrets, "Two Federal Court Rulings Could Change Campaign Finance Landscape," March 26, 2010
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Ongoing Litigation," accessed March 18, 2015
- ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "State Limits on Contributions to Candidates 2023-2024 Election Cycle," accessed May 8, 2025
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 Wisconsin Ethics Commission, "Campaign Finance Overview: State Candidate Committees," accessed August 18, 2025
- ↑ Wisconsin Statutes, "11.0104," accessed August 18, 2025
- ↑ Wisconsin Statutes "11.0204 Reporting," accessed August 18, 2025
- ↑ Wisconsin Statutes, "11.0204 Reporting," accessed August 18, 2025
- ↑ Bills are organized by most recent action. Clicking on a bill will open its page on Ballotpedia's Election Administration Legislation Tracker, which includes bill details and a summary.
