Which major U.S. supermarket chains have donated to Democratic candidates since 2016 and what were the totals by cycle?
Executive summary
OpenSecrets’ “Food Stores” category shows the industry gave about $5.4 million in the 2016 cycle; later-cycle totals and company-level breakdowns are available in OpenSecrets and Reuters’ reporting showing major supermarket PACs — Kroger, Albertsons (and by extension firms like Walmart and JBS/packers in broader food reporting) — made donations to Democrats in recent cycles (for example, Albertsons’ PAC had given $291,500 this cycle vs. $90,000 in 2021–22) [1] [2]. Reuters’ analysis documents Kroger PAC activity ($141,000 this cycle vs. $140,500 in 2021–22) and specific modest gifts to individual Democratic lawmakers from Kroger and Albertsons [3] [4].
1. Industry totals and where to find cycle-by-cycle numbers
OpenSecrets aggregates “Food Stores” (national, regional, local supermarkets) and reports cycle totals — e.g., the industry contributed “a little more than $5.4 million” in 2016 — and maintains cycle-by-cycle contributor lists and top contributors for later cycles (OpenSecrets’ industry summary and cycle pages) [1] [5]. For precise company-by-company Democratic totals by cycle you must consult OpenSecrets’ organization pages and the “Food Stores Top Contributors” cycle pages; that is the data source Reuters and other outlets cite [5] [1].
2. Which major supermarket chains appear in reporting as donating to Democrats
Reuters and related outlets cite Kroger and Albertsons explicitly as making donations that were accepted by Democratic lawmakers this congressional cycle — including PAC disbursements and CEO or PAC gifts to individual Democrats (Kroger’s PAC and Albertsons’ PAC, plus CEO personal donations) [3] [4] [2]. News outlets also note donations from broader food companies that intersect with grocery shelves (e.g., JBS, Tyson, Cargill) to Democratic lawmakers, though those are meatpacking/food-producer contributions rather than supermarket corporate PACs [3].
3. Reported totals for select supermarket PACs and how they moved
Reuters reported Kroger’s PAC at $141,000 “so far” this cycle, a pace slightly ahead of its full 2021–22 cycle total of about $140,500; Albertsons’ PAC was reported at $291,500 this cycle compared with $90,000 in 2021–22 — showing an increase in Albertsons’ giving to lawmakers this cycle [3] [2]. Those figures are the totals Reuters used to document supermarket PAC donations to Democratic lawmakers [3].
4. Scale, sources and legal context of corporate political giving
OpenSecrets and fact-checkers explain that what looks like “corporate” donations typically comes from a company PAC, individual employees, executives, or trade groups — corporations cannot directly fund federal campaigns from the corporate treasury (OpenSecrets methodology and media fact checks) [5] [6]. Reporting blends PAC disbursements, employee donations (which can be reported under an employer), and individual executive contributions; readers should not conflate a company’s PAC dollars with direct corporate treasury spending [5] [6].
5. What this reporting does — and does not — show about partisan leanings
Multiple analyses of food and restaurant chains show overall industry giving often skews GOP, but there are frequent exceptions and substantial employee/individual donations to Democrats; Eater’s and Food Dive’s reporting highlight that restaurant and food-company donations can be split and shift over cycles (most PACs tilt Republican historically, while employee donations sometimes favor Democrats) [7] [8] [9]. Reuters’ grocery-focused analysis, however, documents a tick upward in donations accepted by Democrats this congressional cycle from large grocery PACs and firms [3].
6. Limitations, ambiguities and how to get exact by-cycle company totals
Available sources in this set do not provide a single, complete table listing every major U.S. supermarket chain and its exact Democratic totals by cycle. OpenSecrets’ organization and industry pages contain those company-by-company, cycle-by-cycle figures — consult those specific OpenSecrets pages for authoritative numbers — and Reuters used FEC/OpenSecrets data for its counts [5] [3] [1]. Reporting also mixes grocery chains, food producers, and trade groups; be careful distinguishing supermarket corporate PACs (Kroger, Albertsons) from supplier/manufacturer donations (JBS, Tyson) [3] [9].
Bottom line: OpenSecrets holds the company-level cycle totals you asked for; Reuters’ reporting highlights Kroger and Albertsons as visible supermarket PAC donors to Democrats this cycle (with Kroger PAC at ~$141,000 and Albertsons PAC at ~$291,500 reported), while industry-wide summaries (e.g., 2016 = ~$5.4 million for Food Stores) show the broader scale [5] [3] [1].