What Bloomberg's massive campaign spending would cost the average American
How does Bloomberg's $500 billion ad blitz compare to the average American's net worth?
Mike Bloomberg has suspended his presidential campaign after disappointing Super Tuesday results. FOX Business’ Susan Li with more.
Mike Bloomberg dropped out of the Democratic primary on Wednesday, ending one of the costliest presidential bids in history that saw him spend an unprecedented amount: more than half a billion dollars of his own massive fortune.
While that huge sum may be difficult for the average American to conceptualize, it represents just a fraction of Bloomberg’s net worth. One of the wealthiest people alive, the three-time New York City mayor is worth $58 billion, according to Forbes.
That’s the equivalent of the typical American, whose median net worth is $97,300, according to Federal Reserve data from 2016, spending about $860.
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Essentially, Bloomberg spent the same percentage of his fortune on his $500 million, failed presidential campaign as the average American could give to hit one-third of the max individual contribution to a 2020 candidate (the limit is $2,800).
One of Bloomberg’s biggest single ad purchases during his unsuccessful attempt to headline the Democratic Party’s ticket and face off against President Trump in the November general election was an $11 million, 60-second Super Bowl ad.
But that was just 0.018 percent of his net worth, according to a Washington Post calculator. For an American worth $100,000, that’s the equivalent of $17.
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For all of the money that he poured into the election, however, Super Tuesday voters mostly spurned Bloomberg. He won only one of the 15 races on March 3 -- American Samoa -- ending his huge gamble on the Super Tuesday primaries with just 44 delegates. Candidates need a majority of 1,991 to secure the nomination at the party’s Milwaukee convention in July.
“I’ve always believed that defeating Donald Trump starts with uniting behind the candidate with the best shot to do it,” Bloomberg said in a statement to supporters. “After yesterday’s vote, it is clear that candidate is my friend and a great American, Joe Biden.”
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Throughout the election, hedge fund billionaire Tom Steyer, who dropped out earlier this week, spent the second-highest amount at a little more than $186 million. All other candidates spent less than $50 million apiece.