Often lost amidst the recognition of the surge of private funding of electoral campaigns is a more careful analysis of who is giving what to whom. The Republican Advantage. Both parties get rich. Despite the overall tilt to the Republicans, every major industrial sector contributes large sums to the Democrats as well. The Democratic Allies.
Money follows power.
The major shift to the Republicans followed the 1994 elections, in which the Republicans took control of both houses of Congress. Corporate contributions generally flow to the majority party, both because it has more incumbents and the companies seek to win influence with those in office, and because the majority party controls the legislative agenda. Loyalists and Opportunists. They favored the Republicans even when they were the minority in Congress, and now favor them by large margins. The broad sector totals may in some cases obscure differences within industry groupings.