Other 2010 losers: Self-funding candidates

Here's another lesson of the 2010 election: Money doesn't always buy votes — at least that's usually the case. With two major exceptions — Republican Rick Scott in Florida's open-seat governor's race and GOP nominee Ron Johnson, who defeated incumbent Wisconsin Democratic Sen. Russ Feingold — most self-funding candidates lost big in Tuesday night's results.

According to the Center for Responsive Politics, of the 58 federal candidates who contributed at least half a million dollars to their own campaign, fewer than one in five won. On the state level, comprehensive stats are harder to come by, but self-funding statewide candidates suffered major losses.

That includes former eBay chief Meg Whitman, who spent more than $160 million on her bid to become California's next governor, including a record-breaking $141.5 million of her own money. But she lost by nearly 8 points to Democrat Jerry Brown, who spent just $25 million. According to preliminary numbers, Whitman spent roughly $52 for every vote she got in the race, compared with the $6.50 that Brown spent on average.

But Whitman's average per-vote total was far eclipsed by the amount spent by former World Wrestling Entertainment chair Linda McMahon. Connecticut's GOP Senate nominee spent $46.6 million — all her own cash — on her race. According to preliminary vote totals, McMahon spent nearly $97 for every vote she got in the tiny state — earning her the title of the biggest self-funding loser, at least on a per-capita basis. She wound up losing by 10 points to Richard Blumenthal, who spent less than $10 million — roughly $16 a vote — in the race. Of course, using the seven-figure threshold, Blumenthal also qualifies as a self-funder: He contributed $2.3 million of his own cash to his campaign.

Of course, there are some self-funding success stories. In Florida, Scott spent a record-breaking $78 million on his GOP bid for governor, including $73 million of his own cash. By comparison, Democrat Alex Sink's campaign spent less than $11 million. Scott's cost-per-vote tally, according to preliminary totals: $30 a vote, compared with Sink's average of $4.50 a vote.

In Wisconsin, Republican Ron Johnson spent at least $12 million on his successful bid to defeat Sen. Russ Feingold, who spent more than $16 million. Johnson's tally included more than $8 million of his own cash, and his win last night made him the most successful self-funding candidate in the Senate. Yet his cost-per-vote average wasn't all that much: roughly $11 a vote, compared with Feingold's $16.

(Photo of Meg Whitman: Chris Carlson/AP)