Our second infographic in the Capital in the Capitol series explains why Super PACs are super powerful this presidential election, and tells you who really holds that power—26 individuals. 

Some of their names have appeared here and there in the news, but their collective identities tell a more impressive tale. What do all of these people have in common? While a large pocket of Romney supporters seem to be financial tycoons, and another subset of Obama supporters are Hollywood elite, altogether what unites these folks is their wealth—and the shared belief that it can win an election. 

How?

By pumping money into Super PACs, who then churn out prime time smear campaigns. You've likely seen or heard of those ads about Romney and Obama paid for by "Americans for American Happiness" or something equally as benign and meaningless. Those ads are really by Super PACs, and their real message is that a few rich people are trying to change the course of public elections for their own interests.

We know that what wins an election is votes, not dollars, so we're asking you to help us expose those ads. Send us your favorite Super PAC ad, and we'll bust it.

We're telling you who's bankrolling the major presidential Super PACs—now help us uncover how they're trying to buy this election. Share a link to an ad as a comment below, or email us at info@rootstrikers.org

Editors note:
A corrected version of this infographic was posted on September 10, 2012.

Bullet point #1 was changed from:

"Super PACs are committees that can spend money to expressly advocate for or against candidates in an election. Before Super PACs, only individuals were allowed to do this."

to

"Super PACs are committees that can raise and spend unlimited money to expressly advocate for or against candidates in an election."