Here’s how much state Senate and Assembly candidates spent per vote

In politics, money is often the name of the game. Although the candidate with the most cash to spend does not always win, a flush campaign account never hurts.

This year saw some big-spending campaigns for the state Legislature as both progressive and centrist Democrats found themselves fending off insurgent candidates, and several open seats drew competitive primaries. Outside spending by super PACs looking to sway the results towards their favored candidates also played a significant role this year, with charter school interests alone spending close to $2 million to support its candidates. A plethora of other independent expenditure committees also tried to influence the Democratic primaries, some with more apparent success than others.

Campaign spending can come down to a cost-benefit analysis: how much a candidate spends (or independent expenditure committees spend in support of a candidate) compared to how many votes that candidate ultimately receives. Sometimes, candidates can achieve victory for relatively low costs; other times, candidates and their supporters will spend big for a meager number of votes. 

On July 15, campaigns filed their final post-primary reports, detailing how much they spent in the final stretch before election day. Combined with independent expenditure data kept up to date through the election, City & State was able to calculate a final cost-benefit analysis for this year’s primaries, the first contests to benefit from statewide public campaign financing.

Here’s how much some of the most high-profile campaigns wound up spending per vote. This article was last updated on July 17.

STATE SENATE

SD 6

Siela Bynoe campaign – $85.15 per vote ($532,425.31 total)

Taylor Darling campaign – $86.40 per vote ($470,733.24 total)

New Yorkers for a Balanced Albany (in support of Darling) – $134.62 per vote ($733,400 total)

Total spending for Darling – $221.02 per vote ($1,204,133.35 total)

SD 7

Kim Keiserman campaign – $46.76 per vote ($322,876.76 total)

Brad Schwartz campaign – $104.14 per vote ($232,225.41 total)

SD 50

Christopher Ryan campaign – $48.30 per vote ($284,717.99 total)

Thoms Drumm campaign – $48.79 per vote ($203,508.62 total)

ASSEMBLY

AD 18

Noah Burroughs campaign – $14.04 per vote ($38,282.91 total)

Lisa Ortiz campaign – $77.19 per vote ($197,294.33 total)

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Larinda Hooks campaign – $68.59 per vote ($140,739.30 total)

Hiram Monserrate campaign – $124.50 per vote ($174,927.26 total)

Laborers Building a Better New York (supporting Carmona and opposing Monserrate) – $129.50 per vote ($265,739.04 total)

Total spending for Hooks – $198.09 per vote ($406,478.34 total)

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Claire Valdez campaign – $69.58 per vote ($271,982.84 total)

Johanna Carmona campaign – $122.09 per vote ($257,254.10 total)

Juan Ardila campaign – $4.85 per vote ($3,160.96 total)

Laborers Building a Better New York (supporting Carmona) – $36.92 per vote ($77,795.27 total) 

Moving New York Families Forward (supporting Carmona) – $11.39 per vote ($24,000 total)

Stand Up PAC IE (supporting Carmona) – $15.19 per vote ($32,000 total)

Total spending for Carmona – $181.32 per vote ($382,049.37 total)

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Ron Kim campaign – $287.12 per vote ($465,420.74 total)

Yi Andy Chen campaign – $383.97 per vote ($458,457.85 total)

Dao Yin campaign – $1,154.14 per vote ($203,129.06 total)

Moving New York Families Forward (supporting Chen) – $21.78 per vote ($26,000 total) 

Long Island Law Enforcement Foundation (supporting Chen) – $25.13 per vote ($30,000 total)

Total spending for Chen – $430.87 per vote ($514,457.85 total)

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Emily Gallagher campaign – $43.45 per vote ($184,211.19 total)

Anathea Simpkins campaign – $215.85 per vote ($251,681.37 total)

Moving New York Families Forward (supporting Simpkins) – $109.75 per vote ($127,963 total)

Total spending for Simpkins – $325.60 per vote ($379,644.37 total)

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Stefani Zinerman campaign – $72.90 per vote ($314,924.56 total)

Eon Huntley campaign – $37.88 per vote ($242,546.77 total)

New Yorkers for a Balanced Albany (supporting Zinerman) – $54.17 per vote ($234,000 total)

Moving New York Families Forward (supporting Zinerman) – $13.89 per vote ($60,000 total)

Voters of NY Inc. (Defeat the DSA) (supporting Zinerman) $15.73 per vote ($67,964 total)

New York Women Lead (supporting Zinerman) – $5.19 per vote ($22,421 total)

Stand Up PAC IE (supporting Zinerman) – $3.47 per vote ($15,000 total)

Total spending for Zinerman – $165.35 per vote ($714,309.56 total)

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Eddie Gibbs campaign – $89.94per vote ($210,367.25 total)

Xavier Santiago campaign – $60.66 per vote ($181,560.11 total)

New Yorkers for a Balanced Albany (supporting Gibbs) – $76.10 per vote ($178,000 total)

Voters of NY Inc (supporting Gibbs) – $78.16 per vote ($182,820 total)

Total spending for Gibbs – $244.20 per vote ($5671,187.25 total)

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Micah Lasher campaign – $86.79 per vote ($607,216.06 total)

Eli Northrup campaign – $69.09 per vote ($313,666.08 total)

Carmen Quinones campaign – $10.32 per vote ($7,919.31 total)

Melissa Rosenberg campaign – $340.01 per vote ($123,422.39 total)

Jack Kellner campaign – $569.50 per vote ($153,765.00 total)

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Jordan Wright campaign – $81.86per vote ($331,436.45 total)

Maria Ordoñez campaign – $67.64 per vote ($168,492.33 total)

Shana Harmongoff campaign – $60.85 per vote ($85,858.06 total)

Laborers Building a Better New York (supporting Wright) – $8.89 per vote ($36,029.34 total)

New Yorkers for a Balanced Albany (supporting Wright) – $10.37 per vote ($42,000 total)

Voters for NY Inc (supporting Wright) – $10.80 per vote ($25,266 total)

Stand Up PAC IE (supporting Wright) – $3.70 per vote ($15,000 total)

Total spending for Wright – $111.02 per vote ($449,731.79 total)

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Michael Benedetto campaign – $37.54 per vote ($213,653.83 total)

Jonathan Soto campaign – $28.95 per vote ($178,626.17)

Moving New York Families Forward (supporting Benedetto) – $20.52 per vote ($116,808 total)

Laborers Building a Better New York (supporting Benedetto) – $5.69 per vote ($32,369.12 total)

Voters for NY Inc (opposing Soto) – ($10,000) $1.76 per vote

New York State Association of Realtors Fund (supporting Benedetto) – $10.68 per vote ($60,795.84 total)

Stand Up PAC IE (supporting Benedetto) – $6.15 per vote ($35,000 total)

Total spending for Benedetto – $80.76 per vote ($459,626.79 total)

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MaryJane Shimsky campaign – $20.14 per vote ($180,057.78 total)

Tom Abinanti campaign – $20.09 per vote ($120,556.66 total)

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Sarahana Shrestha campaign – $18.70 per vote ($169,261.40 total)

Gabi Madden campaign – $71.45 per vote ($328,326.68 total)

New York Women Lead (supporting Madden) – $13.04 per vote ($59,550 total)

Hudson Valley Voters (supporting Madden) – $28.63 per vote ($131,550 total)

Moving New York Families Forward (supporting Madden) – $6.53 per vote ($30,000 total)

Abundant New York  (supporting Shrestha) – $3.93 per vote ($35,560.80 total)

Total spending for Madden – $119.57 per vote ($549,426.68 total)

Total spending for Shrestha – $22.63 per vote ($204,821.40 total)

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Didi Barrett campaign – $82.33 per vote ($389,568.93 total)

Claire Cousin campaign – $79.74 per vote ($282,740.31 total)

New York Women Lead (supporting Barrett) – $4.66 per vote ($22,050 total)

New York State Association of Realtors Fund (supporting Barrett) – $13.32 per vote ($63,025.12 total)

Total spending for Barrett – $100.31 per vote ($474,644.95 total)

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Gabriella Romero campaign – $63.23 per vote ($214,595.67 total)

Ginnie Farrell campaign – $61.67 per vote ($148,811.28 total)

Dustin Reidy campaign – $127.40 per vote ($247,542.08 total)

Owusu Anane campaign – $88.29 per vote ($144,171.96 total)

Abundant New York (supporting Romero) – $7.37 per vote ($25,000 total)

Total spending for Romero – $70.59 per vote ($239,595.67 total)