# OpenFEC MCP for AI Agents AI Agent Connect > OpenFEC lets you pull real-time federal campaign finance data directly into your AI agent. You can search for candidates, track political committee filings, and analyze election spending totals without manual downloads. It's the fastest way to get official Federal Election Commission data for your research or reporting. ## Overview - **Category:** data-analytics - **Price:** Free - **Endpoint:** https://edge.vinkius.com/vk_preview_c6nkNH6j72jZbM1ngWScUbTjVSexSpaqFpqhIytX/ai-agent-connect - **Tags:** campaign-finance, election-data, political-transparency, federal-data, financial-reporting, public-records ## Description You can now pull official federal election data into your conversation without leaving your workspace. If you're trying to figure out how much a specific candidate spent in the last cycle or who's backing a particular political action committee, this Connector does the heavy lifting for you. It pulls from the official OpenFEC API, giving your agent access to the same records used by campaign auditors and journalists. You can ask for summaries of candidate totals, look up committee metadata, or dig into historical filing designations. It takes the friction out of finding specific financial records because your agent handles the filtering and data retrieval. You'll find this is a core part of the Vinkius catalog for anyone who needs high-integrity government data for political analysis. Instead of navigating a clunky web portal and copying numbers into a spreadsheet, you just ask your agent to find the facts and let it build the summary for you. ## Tools ### get_candidate_history Fetch the history of a candidate's filings and designations. This helps you see how a person's status has changed over multiple election cycles. ### get_candidate Get detailed information for a specific candidate by their unique ID. Use this to pull a full profile for an individual running for office. ### get_candidate_totals Pull aggregated financial totals for a specific candidate. It's the quickest way to see a candidate's overall fundraising and spending. ### get_committee_history See how a committee's characteristics have changed over time. This provides context on how a political group has evolved. ### get_committee Fetch detailed information for a specific committee by its ID. This gives you the core metadata for a PAC or party committee. ### get_totals_by_committee_type Get financial totals for a specific type of committee. This helps you compare different types of political organizations. ### get_totals_by_entity Get financial totals aggregated by candidate or committee entity. This lets you see the big picture of funding across different groups. ### get_totals_officer_summary Summarize financial data by a specific committee officer. This helps identify the financial roles within a committee. ### list_candidates Fetch a list of candidates using filters like state, party, or election cycle. This is your primary way to find people running for office. ### list_committees Fetch a list of committees with specific filters. Use this to find political action committees or party groups. ### list_filings List all electronic and paper filings with various filters. This gives you a broad view of all submitted records. ### list_reports Fetch financial reports filed by specific types of committees. This helps you narrow down reports by the organization type. ### list_schedule_a Itemize receipts from individual and committee contributions. This is where you find who gave money to a campaign. ### list_schedule_b Itemize disbursements like operating expenditures and refunds. Use this to see where a campaign is spending its money. ### list_schedule_c List information on loans received or made by committees. This tracks the debt and credit of a political group. ### list_schedule_d List debts and obligations owed by or to committees. This provides a clear view of a committee's outstanding liabilities. ### list_schedule_e List independent expenditures for supporting or opposing candidates. This shows spending that isn't directly coordinated with a campaign. ### list_schedule_f List coordinated party expenditures with candidates. This tracks spending done in coordination with a specific campaign. ### list_state_election_offices Get contact information for state election offices. This is useful for finding the right government contact for local matters. ### search_candidates Search for candidates by name or other specific attributes. This is the fastest way to find a specific person when you only have a name. ### search_committees Search for committees by name or ID. Use this to quickly locate a specific political action committee. ## Prompt Examples **Prompt:** ``` Who are the presidential candidates for the 2024 cycle? ``` **Response:** ``` I've found the registered presidential candidates for the 2024 cycle. Here they are: | Candidate Name | ID | Party | | :--- | :--- | :--- | | [Name 1] | P00000001 | Democratic | | [Name 2] | P00000002 | Republican | | [Name 3] | P00000003 | Independent | Would you like to see the financial totals for any of these candidates? ``` **Prompt:** ``` How much did candidate P00000001 spend in 2024? ``` **Response:** ``` For the 2024 cycle, candidate **P00000001** has reported the following: * **Total Receipts:** $X,XXX,XXX * **Total Disbursements:** $Y,XXX,XXX * **Cash on Hand:** $Z,XXX,XXX I can also pull a list of their specific disbursements if you'd like to see where the money went. ``` **Prompt:** ``` Find committees with 'Action' in the name. ``` **Response:** ``` I found several committees matching 'Action'. Notable ones include: * **Climate Action PAC** (ID: C00000001) * **Justice Action Fund** (ID: C00000002) * **Liberty Action Group** (ID: C00000003) Which one would you like to inspect for detailed filings? ``` ## Capabilities ### Find candidates by party or state Filter through thousands of candidates to find specific individuals running for office. ### Get committee financial totals Pull aggregated spending and fundraising numbers for political action committees. ### Pull detailed candidate profiles Retrieve specific metadata and identifiers for any candidate in the federal system. ### View historical filing data Look back at how candidate designations and committee characteristics have changed over time. ### List specific election reports Access various types of financial reports filed by specific committee categories. ### Search for committees by name Quickly locate political groups using simple name searches or unique identifiers. ### Get state election office contacts Find contact details for state election offices to help with local coordination. ## Use Cases ### Verifying donor receipts A journalist wants to know who donated to a specific candidate. They ask the agent to list receipts using `list_schedule_a`. ### Analyzing independent spending An analyst needs to see how much a PAC spent on independent expenditures. They ask the agent to pull data from `list_schedule_e`. ### Building a transparency app A developer is building a transparency app and needs to find all candidates in a specific state. They use `list_candidates`. ### Checking committee debt A researcher wants to see the debt of a political committee. They ask the agent to check `list_schedule_d`. ## Benefits - Pull candidate totals using `get_candidate_totals` to see funding instantly. - Verify campaign spending with `list_schedule_b` to see where money goes. - Track PAC history with `get_committee_history` to see organizational changes. - Search for candidates quickly with `search_candidates` to find specific people. - Access detailed reports with `list_reports` to see specific committee filings. - Get state office contacts with `list_state_election_offices` for local coordination. ## How It Works The bottom line is you get direct access to federal election data without manual searching. 1. Subscribe to the OpenFEC MCP 2. Enter your OpenFEC API Key in the configuration 3. Ask your agent to pull candidate totals, committee histories, or specific filings ## Frequently Asked Questions **Can I use OpenFEC to find out who donated to a specific campaign?** Yes, you can. This Connector allows your agent to pull itemized receipts from individual and committee contributions, showing you who gave money and how much. **Does the OpenFEC MCP include state-level data?** It focuses on federal campaign finance data. However, it does include contact information for state election offices if you need to reach out to those specific government bodies. **How often does the data in OpenFEC update?** The data updates whenever the Federal Election Commission receives and processes new filings. Your agent will always pull the most recent records available in the official database. **Can I use this for my own local city election?** This Connector is designed for federal elections. For local city or county elections, you would typically need a different data source as those are not managed by the FEC. **Is the data from OpenFEC official?** Yes, this Connector pulls directly from the official OpenFEC API, which is the government standard for federal election finance transparency. **Can I find out how much a specific candidate has raised in total for an election cycle?** Yes! Use the `get_candidate_totals` tool with the candidate's ID and the desired cycle. It will return aggregated financial summaries including total receipts and disbursements. **How do I search for all candidates running for the Senate in a specific state?** You can use the `list_candidates` tool and provide 'S' for the office and the two-letter state abbreviation (e.g., 'CA' for California) to filter the results. **Is it possible to see the history of a candidate's previous filings?** Absolutely. The `get_candidate_history` tool allows you to retrieve historical data for a candidate, showing their filings and designations over time.