It takes a lot of money — and food — to win elections.
Campaigns are allowed to spend their funds on a wide range of expenses, according to the Federal Election Commission, as long as it has some connection with influencing the election of the candidate. Generally, that covers advertising costs, hotel stays and car rentals, and office supplies.
And for most, campaigns and chow go hand-in-hand.
Nearly every congressional candidate in Orange County spent significant portions of their campaign funds on food-related costs this campaign cycle, according to an analysis of financial disclosure forms by the Orange County Register.
The expenses cover the period from the start of the election cycle, Nov. 9, 2022, up to Oct. 16.
Korean barbecue, Sweetgreen, pizza, fast food joints and grocery stores dominate the dining decisions for the 12 House candidates in Orange County. Candidates are stopping for bites at local restaurants as well as popular haunts in Washington, D.C.
Here’s a look at where the candidates ate — and how their dining expenses stacked up with other campaign costs.
CA-38
Most of the campaign cash Rep. Linda Sánchez spent on food, fundraisers and other events — about $105,330 in total — went toward restaurants out of state. She frequently catered from and ate at fine dining spots including 57 Ocean Prime and Charlie Palmer Steak in Washington, D.C., spending just over $7,000 at those two restaurants.
Other places the campaign catered from included French restaurant Bistro Cacao, the Duck and Peach and Osteria Morini, all in D.C. At those three spots, the campaign spent more than $11,500.
Back home in California, Sánchez most often visited Dal Rae Restaurant, a family-owned steakhouse in Pico Rivera.
Eric Ching, former Walnut mayor, reported around $42,141 for food expenses. Nearly 70% of that was spent at Happy Harbor Restaurant, a Chinese banquet-style seafood restaurant in Rowland Heights.
Ching: Raised $233,648 ($23,000 in personal loans), spent $191,660
Sánchez: Raised $1.4 million, spent $1.3 million
CA-40
Fast food and fast casual joints — Chipotle, In-N-Out, Jersey Mike’s, Panda Express and Raising Cane’s — were highlights for Rep. Young Kim’s campaign this cycle.
Pizza, too, was a staple for her campaign. The nearly $190,000 spent on food this cycle included orders at Domino’s, Wise Guys Pizzeria and Pepz Pizza & Eatery, to name a few.
Locally, Kim’s campaign frequented Pacific Coast Hotdogs a few times, designated as food for interns. But Jjang, a Korean restaurant in Buena Park, also seems to be a campaign favorite; some $680 was spent there over 16 trips.
In Washington, D.C., the Capitol Hill Club, a social club for Republicans, was a frequent haunt, with some of the more than $8,500 spent marked as fundraisers, as was Paraiso, a Mexican restaurant and taqueria that accounted for $4,400.
Joe Kerr, a retired firefighter captain, only noted $3,270 for food expenses. That included $1,470 for Avalon Caterers and $1,800 at a Beverly Hills fundraiser.
Kerr: Raised $2 million ($1.2 million in personal loans), spent $1.6 million
Kim: Raised $8.4 million, spent $6 million
CA-45
Like Kim, Rep. Michelle Steel’s campaign has frequented a lot of fast food and fast casual restaurants, with much of it noted as refreshments for volunteers.
More than $1,100 was spent at Chick-fil-A and over $1,300 at Raising Canes. Other highlights included Chipotle, McDonalds and Taco Bello.
The campaign spent more than $10,200 at the Capitol Hill Club in Washington, D.C., for meeting and meal costs.
Jeong Yuk Jeom, a Korean barbecue spot in Los Angeles, was visited by Steel’s campaign as was Mochinut and Porto’s Bakery, both in Buena Park. Overall, her campaign spent more than $154,000 on food.
On the other side of the table is Derek Tran, a Democrat who spent more than $13,000 for campaign-related dining.
His expenses include more than $9,000 at Golden Sea Restaurant in Anaheim as well as receipts at AJAJ Cafe in Long Beach, Cafe 949 in Garden Grove and Carrot And Daikon Banh Mi in Garden Grove.
Tran’s campaign also spent about $430 at Vons and Vallarta grocery stores.
Tran: Raised $5 million, spent $4.4 million
Steel: Raised $9.4 million ($1.9 million in personal loans), spent $7.3 million
CA-46
Rep. Lou Correa, D-Santa Ana, spent approximately $116,000 on food-related expenses, covering catering for fundraisers and coffee for meetings.
Much of that — around $94,000 — was spent at Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, mainly for lodging, food and beverage for events.
On the opposite coast, Correa spent just over $8,000 at the National Democratic Club, a membership-only social and networking venue founded in 1953 by former members of the Truman administration.
In Correa’s district, excluding Disneyland Resort, he frequented Costa Azul in Santa Ana, a Mexican restaurant that serves up house-made guacamole, nachos, aguachiles and taco al presidente. At Costa Azul, Correa spent around $485.
Republican David Pan reportedly did not spend any money on food, according to campaign finance reports submitted to the Federal Election Commission.
Instead, he spent money on door hangers, postcards, campaign events and other related activities like consulting services.
Correa: Raised $1.3 million, spent $902,622
Pan: Raised $67,557 ($10,000 in personal loans), spent $64,872
CA-47
The race to replace Rep. Katie Porter is sure to be a nail-biter and both candidates and outside groups have raised and spent big money. But most important, how much are the candidates spending on food?
Democratic state Sen. Dave Min has spent approximately $12,000 on catering out of the total $13,488 he spent on food during his campaign. Of those catering costs, Min paid the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee around $2,100.
Most of Min’s catering expenses, about $7,410, were incurred in Irvine. Some of the restaurants he used were Mendocino Farms, Sgt. Pepperoni’s Pizza and Taco Rosa, a Mexican cantina located at The Market Place.
Min also frequented grocery stores on the campaign trail for food as well, spending around $639 at Stater Brothers and Costco.
Republican Scott Baugh, on the other hand, spent over $22,000 on food during his campaign. Of that, close to $15,000 was spent on restaurants and grocery stores in and around the district.
Baugh spent the most — $7,132 — at thehouse Newport Beach, a private members-only supper club and bar with views of Newport Harbor. Apart from thehouse, the only restaurant he visited more than once was Sushi Town in Costa Mesa.
At grocery stores Albertsons, Costco and Trader Joe’s, Baugh spent around $2,230.
Baugh: Raised $4.1 million ($30,000 in personal loans), spent $3.1 million
Min: Raised $6.1 million, spent $5.6 million
CA-49
Rep. Mike Levin spent approximately $30,410 on food during his campaign, with $6,587 going toward catering and meals from the DCCC and the National Democratic Club. The next largest expense, about $5,270, was for ordering food through delivery apps DoorDash and Grubhub.
While campaign finance reports don’t specify the exact restaurants from which the campaign ordered food using the delivery service apps, they do tell us which restaurants Levin frequented.
A favorite was Domino’s, where the campaign spent more than $1,300. Sweetgreen, a fast-casual restaurant chain known for its salads and grain bowls, was another preference, with the campaign reporting $1,014 in spending there.
Republican Matt Gunderson spent close to $38,000 in food costs during his campaign, with a big sum — $9,242 — going to event venue and catering costs at Big Canyon Country Club in Newport Beach.
He’s also hosted events at Bistango in Irvine, Glasspar in Dana Point, Heritage Barbecue and Bad to the Bone BBQ in San Juan Capistrano and Laguna Cliffs Marriott Resort & Spa, collectively spending $9,625.
The restaurant Gunderson has visited the most, three times in total, is Homestate, a Tex-Mex chain with a location in Oceanside.
Gunderson: Raised $3.4 million ($2.1 million in personal loans), spent $3.1 million
Levin: Raised $5.1 million, spent $4.4 million
