What You Need to Know
Artists are free to post art on their own website, or free art-sharing sites, that supports the election or defeat of a candidate without any obligation to report the costs.
On the other hand, if you create art that calls for the election or defeat of a specific candidate and also pay to have your art posted on a third party’s website (most commonly in the form of an advertisement), federal election law requires clear disclaimers that include your name and address. The same disclaimers must also be included if the art is posted as a paid advertisement to solicit contributions for a candidate.
Any money spent on Internet advertisements that supports election or defeat of a candidate is considered a campaign contribution – no matter how low the cost.
If the amount spent is over $250, it must be reported to the Federal Election Commission. So, if you create a design that clearly supports the election of a candidate and pay to post that art on a website for an event, that money is a considered a contribution, and may need to be reported.
