THE MERRILL STRATEGY GROUP
$17.31M
2025-2026 cycle
THE MERRILL STRATEGY GROUP is a print & mail vendor. In the 2025-2026 cycle THE MERRILL STRATEGY GROUP was paid $17.31M across 33 client committees, of which $357K flowed through Independent Expenditures rather than direct committee payments.
Part I Identity
Stable facts about this entity. These figures do not change as you adjust the timeframe in Part II.
Source split
$17.31M
=
$16.95M
(Schedule B)
+
$357K
(Independent Expenditures)
| Schedule B direct committee payments |
$16,952,942 | 371 rows | 97.9% |
| Independent Expenditures money this entity spent supporting candidates, NOT a committee paying them |
$356,513 | 8 rows | 2.1% |
- Activity span ALL TIME
- May 25, 2006 → Jul 31, 2026
- spans 20.2 years
- Disbursements ALL TIME
- 371
- Schedule B + IE rows
- Client committees ALL TIME
- 33
- distinct payers
Part II Activity in selected window
One timeframe control governs all three panels below. Change it once and the trajectory, top buyers, and party breakdown all update together.
Spend trajectory
Monthly spend to this vendor over the last 12 months.
Aug 2025
Jul 2026
$1.91M
across 12 months
Top buyers
Two views of the same data — diagram and table share the time-window control and the same top-buyers slice. Click "View all buyers in research" to drill in with the matching date range.
VIEW 1 DIAGRAM DECORATIVE
Top buyers last 1 months · top 1
VIEW 2 TABLE EXPORTABLE
| Filer | Total spend | Disbursements |
|---|---|---|
| STEYER FOR GOVERNOR 2026 1485077 |
$82,271 | 2 |
VIEW 1 DIAGRAM DECORATIVE
Top buyers last 3 months · top 10
VIEW 2 TABLE EXPORTABLE
| Filer | Total spend | Disbursements |
|---|---|---|
| HOUSING PROVIDERS FOR RESPONSIBLE SOLUTIONS, SPONSORED BY HOUSING PROVIDERS 1446977 |
$997,119 | 2 |
| STEYER FOR GOVERNOR 2026 1485077 |
$82,271 | 2 |
| CABALLERO FOR STATE TREASURER 2026; ANNA 1459007 |
$47,489 | 4 |
| SOUTH BAY AFL-CIO LABOR COUNCIL ISSUES ACCOUNT SPONSORED BY SOUTH BAY AFL-CIO LABOR COUNCIL 1243364 |
$30,587 | 3 |
| 741906 741906 |
$22,374 | 2 |
| IBEW 332 INDEPENDENT EXPENDITURE FUND (SPONSORED BY INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF ELECTRICAL WORKERS LOCAL 332) 1481744 |
$22,327 | 2 |
| NPH ACTION FUND 1387772 |
$9,874 | 2 |
| SHARP-COLLINS FOR ASSEMBLY 2026 1477305 |
$3,000 | 1 |
| 741666 741666 |
$3,000 | 2 |
| DUNCAN FOR SENATE 2026; CHRIS 1485389 |
$1,299 | 2 |
VIEW 1 DIAGRAM DECORATIVE
Top buyers last 6 months · top 10
VIEW 2 TABLE EXPORTABLE
| Filer | Total spend | Disbursements |
|---|---|---|
| HOUSING PROVIDERS FOR RESPONSIBLE SOLUTIONS, SPONSORED BY HOUSING PROVIDERS 1446977 |
$997,119 | 2 |
| STEYER FOR GOVERNOR 2026 1485077 |
$258,467 | 11 |
| CABALLERO FOR STATE TREASURER 2026; ANNA 1459007 |
$78,056 | 9 |
| 741906 741906 |
$34,380 | 3 |
| SOUTH BAY AFL-CIO LABOR COUNCIL ISSUES ACCOUNT SPONSORED BY SOUTH BAY AFL-CIO LABOR COUNCIL 1243364 |
$30,587 | 3 |
| IBEW 332 INDEPENDENT EXPENDITURE FUND (SPONSORED BY INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF ELECTRICAL WORKERS LOCAL 332) 1481744 |
$22,327 | 2 |
| SHARP-COLLINS FOR ASSEMBLY 2026 1477305 |
$15,350 | 9 |
| BLAKESPEAR FOR SENATE 2026; CATHERINE 1456912 |
$11,862 | 3 |
| NPH ACTION FUND 1387772 |
$9,874 | 2 |
| THIER FOR ASSEMBLY 2026; HOLLI 1480282 |
$8,250 | 2 |
VIEW 1 DIAGRAM DECORATIVE
Top buyers last 12 months · top 10
VIEW 2 TABLE EXPORTABLE
| Filer | Total spend | Disbursements |
|---|---|---|
| HOUSING PROVIDERS FOR RESPONSIBLE SOLUTIONS, SPONSORED BY HOUSING PROVIDERS 1446977 |
$997,119 | 2 |
| STEYER FOR GOVERNOR 2026 1485077 |
$268,625 | 13 |
| GLAZER; CITIZENS FOR A BETTER CALIFORNIA, A BALLOT MEASURE COMMITTEE SPONSORED BY SENATOR STEVE 1404127 |
$164,716 | 8 |
| CABALLERO FOR STATE TREASURER 2026; ANNA 1459007 |
$130,271 | 17 |
| CABALLERO THRIVE CALIFORNIA BALLOT MEASURE COMMITTEE; ANNA 1453695 |
$100,411 | 2 |
| SOUTH BAY AFL-CIO LABOR COUNCIL ISSUES ACCOUNT SPONSORED BY SOUTH BAY AFL-CIO LABOR COUNCIL 1243364 |
$73,447 | 6 |
| SHARP-COLLINS FOR ASSEMBLY 2026 1477305 |
$37,492 | 20 |
| 741906 741906 |
$34,380 | 3 |
| IBEW 332 INDEPENDENT EXPENDITURE FUND (SPONSORED BY INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF ELECTRICAL WORKERS LOCAL 332) 1481744 |
$22,327 | 2 |
| DUNCAN FOR SENATE 2026; CHRIS 1485389 |
$17,973 | 11 |
VIEW 1 DIAGRAM DECORATIVE
Top buyers last 18 months · top 10
VIEW 2 TABLE EXPORTABLE
| Filer | Total spend | Disbursements |
|---|---|---|
| HOUSING PROVIDERS FOR RESPONSIBLE SOLUTIONS, SPONSORED BY HOUSING PROVIDERS 1446977 |
$997,119 | 2 |
| STEYER FOR GOVERNOR 2026 1485077 |
$268,625 | 13 |
| GLAZER; CITIZENS FOR A BETTER CALIFORNIA, A BALLOT MEASURE COMMITTEE SPONSORED BY SENATOR STEVE 1404127 |
$164,716 | 8 |
| CABALLERO FOR STATE TREASURER 2026; ANNA 1459007 |
$130,271 | 17 |
| CABALLERO THRIVE CALIFORNIA BALLOT MEASURE COMMITTEE; ANNA 1453695 |
$100,411 | 2 |
| SOUTH BAY AFL-CIO LABOR COUNCIL ISSUES ACCOUNT SPONSORED BY SOUTH BAY AFL-CIO LABOR COUNCIL 1243364 |
$73,447 | 6 |
| SHARP-COLLINS FOR ASSEMBLY 2026 1477305 |
$50,339 | 24 |
| 741906 741906 |
$34,380 | 3 |
| HENDERSON 4 SUPERINTEDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION 2026 1468266 |
$25,012 | 9 |
| SHARP-COLLINS FOR ASSEMBLY 2024 1460139 |
$25,000 | 1 |
VIEW 1 DIAGRAM DECORATIVE
Top buyers last 24 months · top 10
VIEW 2 TABLE EXPORTABLE
| Filer | Total spend | Disbursements |
|---|---|---|
| HOUSING PROVIDERS FOR RESPONSIBLE SOLUTIONS, SPONSORED BY HOUSING PROVIDERS 1446977 |
$1,093,404 | 5 |
| SAN FRANCISCO FIRE FIGHTERS LOCAL 798 P.A.C. - BALLOT ISSUES 1462942 |
$835,321 | 22 |
| AHRENS AND OPPOSING TARA SREEKRISHNAN FOR ASSEMBLY 2024, SPONSORED BY HOUSING PROVIDERS; NEIGHBORS SUPPORTING PATRICK 1475691 |
$531,896 | 13 |
| STEYER FOR GOVERNOR 2026 1485077 |
$268,625 | 13 |
| WELCOMEPAC C00786830 |
$210,264 IE $210,264 |
4 |
| 963026 963026 |
$193,846 | 6 |
| GLAZER; CITIZENS FOR A BETTER CALIFORNIA, A BALLOT MEASURE COMMITTEE SPONSORED BY SENATOR STEVE 1404127 |
$164,716 | 8 |
| SHARP-COLLINS FOR ASSEMBLY 2024 1460139 |
$144,179 | 19 |
| CABALLERO FOR STATE TREASURER 2026; ANNA 1459007 |
$130,271 | 17 |
| CABALLERO THRIVE CALIFORNIA BALLOT MEASURE COMMITTEE; ANNA 1453695 |
$100,411 | 2 |
By party
Revenue by party
D · 100%
R · 0%
| Party | Amount | % |
|---|---|---|
| Democratic | $12,572,513 | 72.63% |
| Republican | $0 | 0.00% |
| Non-partisan | $4,736,943 | 27.37% |
Part III Reference tables
Full all-time and cycle-to-date data.
Money flow through this vendor
Where their ad buys point
IE payers (left) → races the buys targeted (right) · independent-expenditure filings onlyNo activity in the last 1 months.
No activity in the last 3 months.
No activity in the last 6 months.
No activity in the last 12 months.
No activity in the last 18 months.
Cycle-over-cycle trajectory
current cycle earlier election cycle off-cycle year quarterly · 6 years
Per-quarter totals
| Year | Q | Cycle | Total | Txns | Top buyer · share | Top category · share | Cum. (cycle) | YoY % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Q3 | 2020 | $3.02M | 8 | TOM STEYER 2020 100% | Print & Mail 100% | $3.02M | — |
| 2019 | Q4 | 2020 | $2.67M | 19 | TOM STEYER 2020 100% | Print & Mail 100% | $5.69M | — |
| 2020 | Q1 | 2020 | $6.04M | 57 | TOM STEYER 2020 100% | Print & Mail 100% | $12M | — |
| 2020 | Q2 | 2020 | $370K | 4 | TOM STEYER 2020 100% | Print & Mail 100% | $12M | — |
| 2023 | Q2 | 2024 | $7K | 1 | LEE, BARBARA 100% | Print & Mail 100% | $7K | — |
| 2023 | Q3 | 2024 | $82K | 5 | LEE, BARBARA 100% | Print & Mail 100% | $89K | — |
| 2023 | Q4 | 2022 | $3K | 1 | SHARP-COLLINS FOR ASSEMBLY … 100% | Print & Mail 100% | $3K | — |
| 2023 | Q4 | 2024 | $111K | 11 | LEE, BARBARA 100% | Print & Mail 100% | $200K | — |
| 2024 | Q1 | 2024 | $602K | 26 | HOUSING PROVIDERS FOR RESPO… 47% | Print & Mail 100% | $802K | — |
| 2024 | Q3 | 2024 | $55K | 12 | SAN FRANCISCO FIRE FIGHTERS… 67% | Print & Mail 100% | $857K | — |
| 2024 | Q4 | 2024 | $1.74M | 52 | SAN FRANCISCO FIRE FIGHTERS… 46% | Print & Mail 100% | $2.6M | — |
| 2025 | Q1 | 2024 | $25K | 1 | SHARP-COLLINS FOR ASSEMBLY … 100% | Print & Mail 100% | $2.62M | — |
| 2025 | Q2 | 2024 | $25K | 3 | CAMPAIGN FOR A SAFE AND HEA… 72% | Print & Mail 100% | $2.65M | — |
| 2025 | Q3 | 2024 | $104K | 13 | GLAZER; CITIZENS FOR A BETT… 82% | Print & Mail 100% | $2.75M | — |
| 2025 | Q3 | 2026 | $350 | 2 | MULLIN, KEVIN 100% | Software & Tech 100% | $350 | -100% |
| 2025 | Q4 | 2024 | $269K | 20 | CABALLERO THRIVE CALIFORNIA… 37% | Print & Mail 100% | $3.02M | +9462% |
| 2026 | Q1 | 2026 | $88K | 25 | CABALLERO FOR STATE TREASUR… 39% | Print & Mail 46% | $88K | -85% |
| 2026 | Q2 | 2026 | $1.37M | 46 | HOUSING PROVIDERS FOR RESPO… 73% | Print & Mail 93% | $1.46M | — |
| 2026 | Q3 | 2026 | $82K | 2 | STEYER FOR GOVERNOR 2026 100% | Print & Mail 100% | $1.54M | +50% |
Revenue by service category
Per-category breakdown · cycle-to-date
| Category | Total spend | Txns | Avg check | % of total | Top buyer · share | Last paid |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Print & Mail | $16,730,986 | 319 | $52K | 99.5% | TOM STEYER 2020 72% | 2w ago |
| Other / Unclassified | $87,652 | 14 | $6K | 0.5% | ACEVES FOR SUPERINTENDENT O… 75% | 5mo ago |
| Field & Voter Contact | $2,341 | 3 | $780 | 0.0% | BLAKESPEAR FOR SENATE 2026;… 80% | 3mo ago |
| Media | $1,500 | 1 | $2K | 0.0% | 741666 100% | 3mo ago |
| Software & Tech | $350 | 2 | $175 | 0.0% | MULLIN, KEVIN 100% | 12mo ago |
| Travel & Events | $109 | 1 | $109 | 0.0% | CLEAN ENERGY AND GOOD JOBS … 100% | 15y ago |
Client retention
Sticky-relationship signal: how many clients keep coming back across cycles vs one-time buyers.
0
Anchor clients 3+ cycles
$0 · 0% of revenue
10
Repeat clients 2 cycles
$2,037,154 · 12% of revenue
23
One-time clients 1 cycle
$14,915,788 · 88% of revenue
Geographic concentration
Where this vendor's clients are based — federal committees by state, plus implicit jurisdiction for CA and TX state filers.
| State | Total spend | % of revenue | Clients | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CA | $16,952,942 | 100.0% | 33 |
Notable disbursements
5 largest all-time · 5 largest in the current cycle · 5 most recent. Each row earns its place.
| Reason | Date | Filer | Category | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Largest all-time | 2020-02-18 | TOM STEYER 2020 | Print & Mail | DIRECT MAIL SERVICES | $840,552 |
| Largest all-time | 2020-01-31 | TOM STEYER 2020 | Print & Mail | DIRECT MAIL SERVICES | $789,286 |
| Largest all-time | 2026-05-19 | HOUSING PROVIDERS FOR RESPONSIBLE SOLUTIONS, SPONSORED BY HOUSING PROVIDERS | Print & Mail | Mailer/Support/Patrick Wolff/Insurance Commissioner/Statewide | $666,709 |
| Largest all-time | 2019-08-02 | TOM STEYER 2020 | Print & Mail | DIRECT MAIL SERVICES | $582,209 |
| Largest all-time | 2019-07-19 | TOM STEYER 2020 | Print & Mail | DIRECT MAIL SERVICES | $522,556 |
| Largest this cycle | 2026-05-22 | HOUSING PROVIDERS FOR RESPONSIBLE SOLUTIONS, SPONSORED BY HOUSING PROVIDERS | Print & Mail | Mailer/Support/Patrick Wolff/Insurance Commissioner/Statewide | $330,411 |
| Largest this cycle | 2026-07-31 | STEYER FOR GOVERNOR 2026 | Print & Mail | Printing & Postage | $62,295 |
| Largest this cycle | 2026-04-23 | STEYER FOR GOVERNOR 2026 | Print & Mail | Printing | $51,929 |
| Largest this cycle | 2026-04-23 | STEYER FOR GOVERNOR 2026 | Print & Mail | Printing | $36,669 |
| Recent | 2026-07-31 | STEYER FOR GOVERNOR 2026 | Print & Mail | Printing & Postage | $19,977 |
| Recent | 2026-06-12 | SOUTH BAY AFL-CIO LABOR COUNCIL ISSUES ACCOUNT SPONSORED BY SOUTH BAY AFL-CIO LABOR COUNCIL | — | Walkcards | $1,155 |
| Recent | 2026-06-12 | SOUTH BAY AFL-CIO LABOR COUNCIL ISSUES ACCOUNT SPONSORED BY SOUTH BAY AFL-CIO LABOR COUNCIL | Print & Mail | Walkcard | $1,155 |
| Recent | 2026-06-24 | DUNCAN FOR SENATE 2026; CHRIS | — | — | $299 |