This analysis relies on operating expenses reported to the Federal Election Commission for 2023 and 2024. The analysis includes all establishments in Washington D.C., Maryland and Virginia where at least two-thirds of transaction descriptions referenced food, catering or meals.

Only spending by congressional campaigns and leadership PACs was included — allowing spending to be directly tied to a specific person, including congressional candidates and current members. Spending by lobbyist PACs, super PACs, joint fundraising committees, presidential campaign committees, party committees and other groups was excluded.

Meals paid for out of pocket are not reported and would not be counted.

Totals may be a slight undercount since the FEC only requires campaigns to itemize payments when they exceed $200 per vendor per cycle. Data errors such as misspellings in the reports may also affect the analysis.