--- title: Powerball Jackpot Inspires 2016 Presidential Candidates description: Even some presidential candidates can't resist the allure of the record-breaking $1.5 billion jackpot in Wednesday's Powerball drawing canonical: https://time.com/4179015/powerball-jackpot-drawing-presidential-election/ author: Katie Reilly article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-01-13T17:31:13.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-19T07:46:45.149Z article:section: Politics og:title: How the 2016 Candidates Would Spend the Powerball Jackpot og:description: The promise of big bucks hits the campaign trail og:url: https://time.com/4179015/powerball-jackpot-drawing-presidential-election/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8981f3f38457e180/698878f5524fc03cc3df647c/hillary-clinton6.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3363 og:image:height: 1892 og:image:alt: Hillary Clinton og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: How the 2016 Candidates Would Spend the Powerball Jackpot twitter:description: The promise of big bucks hits the campaign trail twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8981f3f38457e180/698878f5524fc03cc3df647c/hillary-clinton6.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # How the 2016 Candidates Would Spend the Powerball Jackpot > Sponsored content. 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It explains the politics, personalities and power dynamics behind the headlines, three times a week. #### Where can I get analysis of Washington politics by email? D.C. Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters.  by [Katie Reilly](https://time.com/author/katie-reilly/)  ## Katie Reilly Jan 13, 2016 5:31 PM UTC  Hillary Clinton speaks during a campaign event at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa on Jan. 12, 2016. Hillary Clinton speaks during a campaign event at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa on Jan. 12, 2016. Patrick Semansky—AP  by [Katie Reilly](https://time.com/author/katie-reilly/)  ## Katie Reilly Jan 13, 2016 5:31 PM UTC Even some of the candidates running for President of the United States can’t resist the allure of the [record-breaking $1.5 billion jackpot](http://time.com/4177143/powerball-jackpot-increase-billion/) in Wednesday night’s [highly anticipated Powerball drawing](http://time.com/4169112/powerball-lottery-winner/). Hillary Clinton [told _Good Morning America_](http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/hillary-clinton-spend-powerball-money-fund-campaign/story?id=36264420) on Wednesday that she bought a Powerball ticket. What if she wins? “Well, I’ll fund my campaign,” she said. The jackpot is more than 13 times the [$112 million that Clinton’s campaign raised](http://time.com/4165391/hillary-clinton-campaign-fundraising/) in 2015. A supporter gave Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush a [campaign contribution in the form of a Powerball ticket](http://www.cnn.com/2016/01/09/politics/jeb-bush-powerball-donald-trump/) as the former Florida governor left a rally on Saturday, according to CNN. “I just want to make sure you realize this is not for me personally,” Bush said. “If we win, I’m sure it will be a \[Federal Election Commission\] violation, but it’s all going to a really good cause.” Bush was surely referring to the fact that the donation of a winning Powerball ticket would violate, by far, the cap on individual contributions to campaigns. It’s also possible that a lottery win, [unlikely as it may be](http://time.com/4171474/powerball-lottery-more-likely-win/), could have the effect of turning someone into a presidential candidate. In an [interview with the _Today_ show](http://www.today.com/news/joe-biden-it-s-possible-donald-trump-could-be-next-t66536) on Tuesday, Vice President Joe Biden—who [announced in October](http://time.com/4086304/joe-biden-presidential-run-decision/) that he would not run for president but has [said he regrets the decision](http://time.com/4170922/joe-biden-regrets-not-running-president/)—was asked if he could think of a scenario that would draw him into the 2016 race. “I’ve learned never to say no, but I can’t imagine one,” Biden said. “If I win the lottery maybe,” he added, before clarifying that it was a joke. 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