The fight to win the Republican presidential nomination will be hard fought with words but also with dollars, as new projections show it will cost around $1 billion to win the GOP nomination.
The projections come from Open Secrets, a firm that tracks campaign-finance spending, and says the final figure will depend on how long it takes for the nomination to be settled.
In recent months more and more names have joined the ever-growing list of Republicans looking to get on the ballot come 2024.
Former President Donald Trump remains the favorite in every poll by a wide margin, but Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former Vice President Mike Pence, Nikki Haley, Vivek Ramaswamy, and Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) all have support amongst party members.
Still, support is not the only thing candidates need to be president or win a nomination. Open Secrets research director Sara Bryner says it takes “a lot of money to become a successful president in the end.”
However, $1 billion is a new number for Republicans, who would likely raise the money from campaigning and super PAC spending.
The cost to be president in 2020 was $6 billion, roughly four times the price of what it cost a candidate in the presidential race two decades ago. But Bryner insists that not everything is set in stone, as much remains to be seen.
“The wild card here is how much we can expect to see in fundraising and spending by super PACs,” Bryner said. “And those are subject to a lot more fluctuation because you can have one billionaire come in, drop $1 million, and that changes the fundraising game.”
The last time the GOP primary was open, when Donald Trump won the nomination in 2016, candidates spent roughly $400 million, while super PACs spent $368 million, totalling to $768 million, Open Secrets reports.
This election isn’t expected to change from 2016, as super PAC spending is estimated to jump at least $500 million, staying neck and neck with campaign fundraising, according to Bryner.
As for where the money will go, Bryner says it’s all about the ads.
“60% of campaign fundraising, super PAC fundraising goes to media firms. And so that’s far and away the biggest place that money goes,” Bryner said.
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