New England Public Radio

Massachusetts residents have donated more than $8 million to presidential candidates this election cycle. That’s according to federal campaign finance reports through last month. And with each donor, comes a story and a reason why they decided to write a check.

Outside of Diana Allen’s house in a quiet Montague neighborhood sits a Bernie Sanders lawn sign. Allen, who works in the nutrition field, says her donation to Sanders’ campaign was the first that she’s ever made, and she thought it was critical to give.

“Bernie Sanders isn’t taking any money from Super PACs,” Allen says. “He doesn’t have any big corporate donors. He’s totally relying on individual contributions from people, largely working people and the middle class.”

While Sanders has taken in less than half as much as Democratic rival Hillary Clinton statewide, the pair have raised nearly the same amount in western Massachusetts. Sanders has relied on smaller donations from more people. Records show Allen gave him about $300.

In Northampton, Smith College professor Maria Banerjee is a long-time Democratic and Clinton donor. This campaign, she’s given the maximum allowed: $2,700. Banerjee says while she understands concerns over so-called “big money” in elections.

“I am not ‘big money’ and I ask for nothing,” Banerjee says. “I’m really expressing my preference and actually my very strong liking and respect for Hillary.”

The funds given by Allen, Banerjee and others who’ve donated to Democratic candidates make up more than two-thirds of all contributions in Massachusetts. The breakdown in the western part of the state is more staggering. Combined, the top four remaining Republican candidates have received almost $400,000 less than the total for Clinton and Sanders.

Massachusetts has gone Democratic in every presidential election since Ronald Reagan was on the ballot. And the GOP’s track record in the Bay State is exactly why William Pruyne, a retiree from East Longmeadow, made his first ever presidential donation, $110, to Ted Cruz.

“Because I’m in a state that is very blue, the best way I figured to assist him would be monetarily,” Pruyne says.

In other words, his donation could be worth more than his vote.And money is just how the election game is played, says David Peskin of Longmeadow. He owns a cleaning supply company, and gave $525 to Marco Rubio’s presidential campaign.

“No candidate can exist without funding,” Peskin says. “If you believe in someone, or something, sometimes people give to a referendums, that type of thing as well, you have to support it financially with the system as it is.”

But there are those who don’t feel compelled to give money to a presidential candidate, period.

On a rainy day in downtown Pittsfield, Mary Bolduc of Pittsfield says there isn’t one candidate she’d donate to.

“There’s too much money in it,” Bolduc says. “They shouldn’t be campaigning the way they do and spending all the money they do on campaigning. It seems like that’s what you have to do to win, and I think it’s a terrible idea.”

So far, most Massachusetts residents have been like Bolduc, and kept their wallets closed. In a state of 6.7 million residents, there’ve have only been 33,000 donations to presidential candidates this election cycle. Of course, there’s still time: the November election is eight months away.

Martha Escobar contributed reporting for this story.

Presidential campaign donations through Jan. 31, 2016