Politician
Ben Ray Luján
Democrat · New Mexico · ran 2 times since 2020, won 2 · incumbent
FEC candidate S0NM00058
Ben Ray Luján (Democrat) raised $6.5M for the 2026 New Mexico Senate race, $2.1M of it from PACs, and outside groups spent $274K for and $0 against them (FEC filings with varying coverage dates; the most common larger-campaign cutoff is Oct 14, 2026). They won.
Raised, all cycles
$16M
2026, 2020; counted once per cycle
From PAC checks
22%
$3.4M from corporations, trade groups, unions and politicians
Outside money for
$1.8M
Super PACs and party groups helping
Outside money against
$404K
Spent attacking them
Every run
Each election and its result. Campaign receipts cover the whole cycle and can appear in both regular and special contests; they count once in the totals above.
| Cycle | Race | Raised | PAC share | Outside for / against | Google ads | All money | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | New Mexico Senate | $6.5M | 32% | $274K / $0 | – | $6.7M | ✓ Won |
| 2020 | New Mexico Senate | $9.3M | 15% | $1.5M / $404K | – | $11M | ✓ Won |
Who wrote the checks
The PACs that gave the most across every run, and what kind of money it is.
Leadership PAC $880KCorporate $655KTrade group $396KUnion $292KOther $267KMembership $209KParty $50KSuper PAC $39K
- DSCCParty$50K
- Votesane PACOther$15K
- Victory Now PACLeadership PAC$10K
- Transport Workers Union of America Political Contributions CommitteeUnionLobbyist PAC$10K
- Nea Fund for Children and Public EducationUnionLobbyist PAC$10K
- American Mobilization PACLeadership PAC$10K
- American Association for Justice Political Action Committee (Aaj PAC)MembershipLobbyist PAC$10K
- Blue Senate PACLeadership PAC$10K
- Common Ground PACLeadership PAC$10K
- American Osteopathic Information Association - Osteopathic Political Action CommitteeMembership$10K
- National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts, Inc. Political Action CommitteeTrade groupLobbyist PAC$10K
- PAC to the FutureLeadership PAC$10K
Outside money, for and against
Super PACs and party groups that spent the most on these races.
- National Association of Realtors Congressional Fundfor $1.5M
- Common Sense New Mexicoagainst $404K
- Ab PACfor $217K
- Workers En Accion PACfor $57K
- American College of Radiology Association PACfor $26K
- Dreams in Action Nmfor $13K
- Indivisible Actionfor $11K
Funding and votes
How their votes align with industry funding
Across 8 industry-vote comparisons with at least $10K in traced funding, they voted the industry's way 1 time (13%). This is a retrospective comparison using covered 2020–2026 runs; some money arrived after the vote. A vote can appear for multiple industries. Unknown coverage is excluded. “With industry” means its stated preferred side, and does not establish causation.
| Vote | Industry | Their money from it | Voted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Most-favored-nation drug pricingSenate · 2026 · 49–49 | Pharma and health care wanted nay | $62K | Yea · against |
| Block Israel arms sale (Apr 2026)Senate · 2026 · 40–59 | Pro-Israel groups wanted nay | $5K | Yea · against |
| ACA enhanced premium tax creditsSenate · 2025 · 51–48 | Insurance wanted yea | $11 | Yea · with industry |
| ANWR coastal plain leasingSenate · 2025 · 49–45 | Oil, gas and coal wanted yea | $4 | Nay · against |
| Block Israel arms sale (Jul 2025)Senate · 2025 · 24–73 | Pro-Israel groups wanted nay | $5K | Yea · against |
| One Big Beautiful Bill ActSenate · 2025 · 50–50 | Oil, gas and coal wanted yeaWall Street and hedge funds wanted yea | $4$21K | Nay · againstNay · against |
| Halve Medicare drug prices (Sanders)Senate · 2025 · 47–53 | Pharma and health care wanted nay | $62K | Yea · against |
| Strike the AI moratoriumSenate · 2025 · 99–1 | Tech and AI wanted nay | $110 | Yea · against |
| Crypto corruption amendmentSenate · 2025 · 47–53 | Crypto wanted nay | $0 | Yea · against |
| GENIUS Act (stablecoins)Senate · 2025 · 68–30 | Crypto wanted yea | $0 | Yea · with industry |
| California clean cars waiver repealSenate · 2025 · 51–44 | Oil, gas and coal wanted yea | $4 | Nay · against |
| OCC bank merger rule repealSenate · 2025 · 52–47 | Wall Street and hedge funds wanted yea | $21K | Nay · against |
| CFPB overdraft rule repealSenate · 2025 · 52–48 | Wall Street and hedge funds wanted yea | $21K | Nay · against |
| IRS DeFi broker rule repealSenate · 2025 · 70–28 | Crypto wanted yea | $0 | Yea · with industry |
| Methane waste emissions charge repealSenate · 2025 · 52–47 | Oil, gas and coal wanted yea | $4 | Nay · against |
| Block Israel arms sale (Nov 2024)Senate · 2024 · 18–79 | Pro-Israel groups wanted nay | $5K | Yea · against |
| SAB 121 repealSenate · 2024 · 60–38 | Crypto wanted yea | $0 | Yea · with industry |
| Joint-employer rule repealSenate · 2024 · 50–48 | Labor unions wanted nay | $153K | Nay · with industry |
| NDAA FY2024Senate · 2023 · 87–13 | Defense contractors wanted yea | $6 | Yea · with industry |
| Pistol brace rule repealSenate · 2023 · 49–50 | Gun lobby wanted yea | $0 | Nay · against |
| Inflation Reduction ActSenate · 2022 · 50–50 | Oil, gas and coal wanted nayPharma and health care wanted nayWall Street and hedge funds wanted nay | $4$62K$21K | Yea · againstYea · againstYea · against |
| Safer Communities Act (post-Uvalde)Senate · 2022 · 65–33 | Gun lobby wanted nay | $0 | Yea · against |
Constituents vs. funders
Voted the way most of their constituents wanted on 4 of 5 key votes (80%)
On 3 votes, industries that gave them $10K+ before the vote wanted the opposite of what most of their constituents wanted. They sided with the funders 0 times and with their constituents 3. Constituent views come from the Cooperative Election Study, a survey of about 60,000 adults a year. A side counts as what constituents wanted only when it leads by more than the margin of error; closer results are shown as split. Party explains most votes, and none of this shows that money changed a vote.
| Vote | Their constituents | Their funders | Voted |
|---|---|---|---|
| Most-favored-nation drug pricingSenate · 2026 | 92% support ±5New Mexico · wanted Yea · CES 2022 | $62K Pharma and health care wanted nay | YeaVoters over funders |
| ACA enhanced premium tax creditsSenate · 2025 | 42% support ±8New Mexico · split · CES 2024 · related question | No industry with a side gave $10K+ | YeaVoters split |
| ANWR coastal plain leasingSenate · 2025 | 47% support ±8New Mexico · split · CES 2024 · related question | No industry with a side gave $10K+ | NayVoters split |
| One Big Beautiful Bill ActSenate · 2025 | 66% support ±8New Mexico · wanted Yea · CES 2024 · related question | $21K Wall Street and hedge funds wanted yea | NayAgainst voters |
| Halve Medicare drug prices (Sanders)Senate · 2025 | 92% support ±5New Mexico · wanted Yea · CES 2022 · related question | $62K Pharma and health care wanted nay | YeaVoters over funders |
| Inflation Reduction ActSenate · 2022 | 73% support ±8New Mexico · wanted Yea · CES 2022 | $62K Pharma and health care wanted nay$21K Wall Street and hedge funds wanted nay | YeaVoters over funders |
| Safer Communities Act (post-Uvalde)Senate · 2022 | 80% support ±7New Mexico · wanted Yea · CES 2024 | No industry with a side gave $10K+ | YeaWith voters |
Figures are the candidate's principal committees as filed with the FEC, cycle by cycle. See About the data.
Questions people ask
- Who funded Ben Ray Luján's 2026 campaign?
- Ben Ray Luján (Democrat) raised $6.5M for the 2026 New Mexico Senate race, $2.1M of it from PACs, and outside groups spent $274K for and $0 against them (FEC filings with varying coverage dates; the most common larger-campaign cutoff is Oct 14, 2026). They won.
- Which PACs gave the most to Ben Ray Luján?
- Victory Now PAC ($10K), Transport Workers Union of America Political Contributions Committee ($10K), Nea Fund for Children and Public Education ($10K), American Mobilization PAC ($10K), American Association for Justice Political Action Committee (Aaj PAC) ($10K) in 2026.
- Which super PACs spent on Ben Ray Luján's race?
- Ab PAC ($217K for), Workers En Accion PAC ($57K for) in 2026.
- How much has Ben Ray Luján raised across elections?
- $6.5M in 2026, $9.3M in 2020. Receipts are counted once per candidate and cycle.