KVIG Informative

Miriam Adelson controls the company that owns the Las Vegas Review-Journal. She’s also one of the largest political donors in the country — and her money has flowed directly into Nevada’s own state legislative races.

Miriam Adelson, widow of the late Sheldon Adelson and controlling owner of News+Media Capital Group, which owns the Las Vegas Review-Journal, spent at least $67.6 million on federal candidates and committees during the 2025-26 election cycle, according to Federal Election Commission filings.

Adelson’s political giving has flowed almost exclusively to Republican candidates and committees. During the 2024 election cycle, she contributed roughly $100 million to Preserve America PAC, a super PAC supporting President Donald Trump, including four separate large donations made in July, August and September of that year alone.

Adelson’s donations extend directly into Nevada’s own state legislative races. She contributed $21,000 to Nevada state legislative candidates, with 72% of that money going to Republican candidates, according to Nevada Secretary of State campaign finance records.

Las Vegas Sands Corporation, the casino company Adelson controls, separately contributed roughly $10 million to Texas 2026 primary politics, matching Adelson’s own individual contribution to the same races, as the company has pushed to legalize casino gambling in that state.

The Review-Journal operates editorially independent of its ownership’s political spending, according to the newspaper’s own public statements, though the paper’s ownership structure means its ultimate controlling owner is simultaneously one of the largest individual political donors in both Nevada and the country.

Nevada campaign finance law requires disclosure of contributions to state candidates but does not require newspapers to disclose political spending by their owners within the body of their own news coverage.

Miriam Adelson’s name doesn’t run in most Review-Journal stories about Nevada elections, even in years when her own money is actively shaping the races the paper covers. Her FEC filings and Nevada’s own campaign finance disclosures tell that story instead — in public records the Review-Journal’s ownership didn’t have to volunteer, and hasn’t had to explain in its own pages.