Democrats spent twice what Republicans did — they don’t have much to show for it

Either money isn’t as important as we thought in politics or Democrats are really bad at spending it

Votes are still being counted but even if the 2020 election isn’t quite over yet, the campaigns themselves are over. Yes, in many places lawyers are sharpening their teeth to contest results and election officials are preparing for recounts, but there are no voters to court, no mailers to design, no signs to wave. The algorithms in charge of our TV commercials and online-ads are already fazing out insane politics for inane products. It’s over.

Those algorithms were kept busy in 2020, as fundraising and spending records of all kinds were broken as candidates, campaigns, and advocacy groups vied for our votes. Joe Biden is the first candidate to raise over $1 billion and North Carolina’s US Senate race is the most expensive congressional contest in history. “The total cost of the 2020 election will nearly reach an unprecedented $14 billion, making it the most expensive election in history and twice as expensive as the previous presidential election cycle.” said OpenSecrets.org in a pre-election day analysis last week.

Democrats had a commanding lead in fundraising and campaign spending at all levels this year, nearly doubling Republicans. Democratic candidates are finishing their campaigns having spent a collective $6.9 billion while their GOP counterparts…