How private donors fund political campaigns

For political parties, election campaigns run on cash. Where do they get it?

Explainer - Money shapes election campaigns. It funds advertising, staff, polling and travel. In New Zealand, much of this money comes from private donors.

RNZ is tracking donations to political parties ahead of the 7 November election. Every declared donation will be published and analysed.

To jump straight to RNZ's political donations tracker, click here.

This is how the system works and what the rules require from parties.

State funding

Parties get state funding each election. This election, $4,145,750 was allocated between parties as a broadcasting allowance for advertising on radio, television and online. The money is split between parties based on factors including past electoral support.

This year, National received $1,079,514, Labour $913,435, the Greens $394,438, ACT $332,158, NZ First $290,639, Te Pāti Māori $228,359 and Opportunity $114,179.

RNZ's donation tracker doesn't include these public funds in the totals for each party - it is focused on private donations.

Where the private money comes in and why it's important

During a regulated period, which runs from 7 August to 6 November for 2026, parties can spend up to $1,503,000 on election advertising plus $36,000 per electorate candidate.

The cap is more than what any party got in state funding - private donations can top them up.

Outside of the regulated period, there are no advertising spending limits. The parties can spend as much as they want to. In election years the messaging from parties kicks off from the beginning of the year, and has been referred to as "permanent campaigning".

But even within the regulated period, having a healthy party war chest is an advantage.

Donations can fund activities that sit outside of what's considered to be advertising spending. These activities can include opinion polling, travel, consultancy, staff salaries and policy development. There is no limit on spending on these activities at any point in the year.

Who can donate, and how much?

There's no upper limit on how much a single donor can give to a political party. Individuals, companies, unions and other organisations can all donate to political parties. Donations from overseas donors are capped at $50.

Details about donors are recorded if they give over a certain amount, and in non-election years these are made publicly available in May the following year. But during an election year, the rules are different.

Donations over $20,000 must be declared within 20 working days. This provides a near real time window into who is pouring money into our democratic system and how much each party is receiving. It's this information RNZ's tracker follows.

The $20,000 rule includes small donations that add up. For example, if a donor gives weekly amounts to a party, the details must be filed when the total of the small amounts hits $20,000.

Party donations under $20,000 won't be made public until 2027, when parties are required to submit a full account of donations.

Each year, parties must file a return naming donors who give more than $6000.

What doesn't get seen

Even when the election year dust has settled and parties file full donation returns, the details of some donors remain a mystery.

Donations below the $6000 threshold are reported as totals only, without names. The party must internally record the name if the donation is more than $1500, but the name doesn't get made public.

The party can accept anonymous donations up to $1500, these are donations where the donor's identity isn't known to the party. These donations are reported as totals only.

Anonymous donations above $1500 cannot be kept in full, anything over that limit must be passed to the Electoral Commission.

There is, however, a legal mechanism that allows a New Zealand donor to give more than $1500 to a political party while keeping their identity hidden from the party itself.

A donation "protected from disclosure" lets a New Zealand donor give more than $1500 to a party anonymously. The donor sends the money to the Electoral Commission, which groups it together with other protected donations and sends the total to the party at regular intervals, without identifying the donor or providing any details of the individual donation.

Candidates can also receive donations but these don't need to be declared until 2027, regardless of how large they are. There's no requirement to report on donations of over $20,000 within 20 days like there is for parties.

There's no limit on how much a donor can give to a candidate but there is a spending limit on advertising of $36,000.

This cap doesn't mean the sums going to candidates are small. Five candidates declared more than $95,000 in donations after the 2023 election. They included National's David MacLeod, Mahesh Muralidar and Siva Kilari, NZ First's Shane Jones and Chlöe Swarbrick from the Greens.

Donations to candidates are made public when returns are filed the following year. The threshold for identifying donors is lower for candidates than it is for parties. Any donor who gives more than $1500 is named.

Donations to political parties are not tax deductible.

Important dates

Below are the important dates for the 2026 general election, including voter registration cutoffs, the regulated advertising period and the day when the final, official results are due to be announced.