GEN_US
Gen Us Data
Original Analysis

Follow the Money

How lobby dollars flow to votes. This page correlates pro-Israel lobby funding with Congressional voting patterns — revealing the relationship between money and allegiance that defines American foreign policy.

Key Finding

Politicians who received $500K+ in lobby money voted with the lobby 90% of the time.

Funded avg allegiance: 72Unfunded avg allegiance: 45
Based on 527 members of Congress | 496 funded, 31 unfunded

Funding Tier vs. Average Allegiance Score

As lobby funding increases, so does the average allegiance score. Each tier shows how many members fall within that funding range and their average loyalty to lobby interests.

$031 members
45avg allegiance
$1 - $50K105 members
55avg allegiance
$50K - $200K196 members
69avg allegiance
$200K - $500K98 members
80avg allegiance
$500K - $1M58 members
88avg allegiance
$1M+39 members
94avg allegiance

Money vs. Loyalty Distribution

Dividing funded members into quadrants by funding level (median: $114K) and allegiance (threshold: 50).

248
High $ + High Loyalty
The “bought” quadrant
0
High $ + Low Loyalty
Took the money, kept independence
23
Low $ + High Loyalty
Loyal without big money
0
Low $ + Low Loyalty
Independent of lobby influence

Strongest Money-to-Vote Correlation

Members receiving $200K+ with allegiance scores of 70+. These members demonstrate the clearest relationship between lobby funding and voting behavior.

#NameStatePartyLobby $Allegiance
1Haley Stevens
Representative
MichiganD$36.3M97
2George Latimer
Representative
New YorkD$19.2M97
3Glenn Ivey
Representative
MarylandD$7.3M97
4Adam Schiff
Senator
CaliforniaD$5.6M97
5Shontel Brown
Representative
OhioD$5.1M97
6Sarah Elfreth
Representative
MarylandD$4.2M93
7Don Davis
Representative
North CarolinaD$4.1M93
8Adriano Espaillat
Representative
New YorkD$3.7M93
9Valerie Foushee
Representative
North CarolinaD$3.5M93
10Mark Messmer
Representative
IndianaR$2.9M93

State-by-State Lobby Spending

#StateTotal Lobby $MembersAvg Allegiance
1Michigan$41.4M1573
2New York$35.8M2880
3California$20.1M5370
4Maryland$13.4M1076
5North Carolina$9.2M1669
6Texas$9.1M3967
7Ohio$8.6M1773
8Florida$8.4M2971
9New Jersey$6.1M1373
10Illinois$4.9M1972
11Oregon$4.6M873
12Nevada$4.5M680
13Colorado$4.2M1077
14Indiana$4.0M1167
15Maine$3.9M482
16Arizona$3.7M1171
17Pennsylvania$3.7M1969
18Georgia$3.5M1570
19Washington$3.1M1275
20Louisiana$3.1M871

Frequently Asked Questions

How does lobby money influence Congressional votes?

Our data shows a strong correlation between the amount of pro-Israel lobby funding a Congress member receives and their allegiance score (a measure of how consistently they vote in alignment with lobby interests). Members receiving $500K+ in lobby money have significantly higher average allegiance scores than those receiving less or no funding. While correlation does not prove causation, the pattern is consistent across both parties.

Which states receive the most lobby money?

States with competitive races, large delegations, and key committee assignments tend to receive the most lobby spending. Our state-by-state breakdown shows the total pro-Israel lobby spending flowing to each state's Congressional delegation, along with average allegiance scores.

What is an allegiance score?

The Gen Us allegiance score (0-100) measures how consistently a member of Congress aligns with pro-Israel lobby interests across tracked funding, votes, PAC relationships, and published positions. Scores of 70-100 are classified as high alignment, 50-69 as moderate alignment, and below 50 as lower alignment.

Do all funded politicians vote with the lobby?

No. While there is a strong overall correlation, some politicians accept lobby money while maintaining independent voting records. Our data identifies these outliers — members who receive significant funding but maintain low allegiance scores, and vice versa. The scatter data on this page shows the full distribution.

Where does this data come from?

Funding data is aggregated from FEC filings, OpenSecrets, and trackaipac.com. Allegiance scores are calculated by Gen Us using a proprietary methodology based on voting records, bill co-sponsorship, and public positions. This correlation analysis is original to Gen Us and is not available from any other source.

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