As the standoff between Chinese and U.S. trade continues, President Joe Biden’s administration is seizing the opportunity to invest in a key battleground state ahead of the 2024 election by granting direct funding and loans to advance the production of semiconductor chips in Arizona.

In March, the Biden administration announced that the Department of Commerce reached a preliminary agreement with Intel to provide $8.5 million in direct funding and $11 billion in loans under the CHIPS and Science Act. The money would go toward expanding the California-based tech company’s facilities in Arizona, New Mexico, Ohio and Oregon. Intel has a large presence in Arizona with four semiconductor factories built and two more under construction.

Then, in April the administration announced a second preliminary agreement with the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, commonly referred to as TSMC, to expand two already existing projects in Arizona and add a third.

Also, Micron recently received a $6.1 billion for their projects in New York and Idaho and Samsung received $6.4 billion for their project in Texas through the CHIPS and Science Act.

Semiconductors, a crucial piece for technology like electric vehicles, have become a focal point in trade conflict with China. The CHIPS and Science Act was passed in 2022 to combat U.S. reliance on East Asia for semiconductors. It laid out $52.7 billion for semiconductor research, development and manufacturing.

The investments by the Department of Commerce are projected to bring thousands of jobs to Arizona in manufacturing and construction. The White House estimates that TSMC will bring over 25,000 jobs to Arizona and Intel estimates their project will bring another 10,000 jobs.

“Thanks to my CHIPS and Science Act — a key part of my Investing in America Agenda — semiconductor manufacturing and jobs are making a comeback” Biden said in a written statement.

Companies invested in Arizona ahead of CHIPS Act awards 

CHIPS funding landing in Arizona is no coincidence. Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz) and Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) played key roles in getting the act passed in 2022 by acting as chief negotiators.

“The goal of the chips and science act is to bring microchip manufacturing back to America and at the same time create really good paying jobs and strengthen our supply chains,” said Kelly in a press release following the announcement of the investment to Intel.

Kelly, who sits on the committees for Energy and Natural Resources and Environment and Public Works, was a top recipient of contributions from the electronics manufacturing industry in the 2020 and 2022 election cycles. He has received $2.5 million over the course of his career in Congress, which began with his 2019 campaign. He won that election and entered office that year.

Sinema accepted $553,000 since her first congressional campaign in 2012, trailing behind Kelly. She served three terms in the House and was elected to the Senate in 2019. She announced her decision not to run again last month.

Intel and TSMC were among the top spenders who lobbied on electronics manufacturing and equipment in 2023. Intel spent about $6.9 million while TSMC spent nearly $3 million. In the first quarter of this year, both companies continued to lobby, with Intel spending $1.6 million and TSMC spending $690,000.

Companies are not required to disclose specifics of how this money was spent but an OpenSecrets analysis found that nine lobbyists for Intel and eight lobbyists for TSMC lobbied the Department of Commerce in 2023.  Each company had eight lobbyists lobbying the department in the first quarter of 2024.

Arizona’s role in the 2024 election

With 11 electoral college votes up for grabs, Arizona could be crucial to Biden’s reelection campaign. Biden narrowly won the state by .03% in 2020.

Biden’s campaign is the top recipient of contributions from the electronics manufacturing and equipment industry. Intel ranks ninth among those contributors, with individual donations adding up to $40,000.

Intel has also invested in Arizona’s toss-up Senate race, an election that could determine whether Democrats retain their slim majority. Likely Democratic candidate Rep. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) received over $7,000 in individual donations this cycle. He is also one of the top recipients of money from the electronics manufacturing industry for this cycle with contributions topping $257,000. He is largely outraising his likely opponent, Kari Lake, who has only received about $25,000 from the industry.

This story was originally published on May 9, 2024, by OpenSecrets, and is republished here with permission.