Fidelity employees still tilt to the Republicans in their cash donations, but less so than before. According to data compiled by the Center for Responsive Politics, which publishes the data at OpenSecrets.com, Fidelity staff have made just under two-thirds of their donations to Republicans this election cycle, down from three-quarters in 2002. Democrats are also winning an increased share of donations from other fund firms,

The shift, which caught the eye of Brett Arends at the Boston Herald, is not because fund workers are being less generous with Republicans; it instead reflects increased giving to Democrats. Workers at the Boston Behemoth, for example, are on pace to double their donations to the Democratic Party this election cycle. During the last mid-term elections in 2002, they donated $159,262 to Democrats at the federal level. This time around they have already given $251,085 through the end of July and November is still months away.

Meanwhile, Democrats have taken in 52 percent of all funds donated by workers in the secutities industry while Republicans have pulled in 48 percent. That is a mirror image of the 2002 election cycle.

The Web site shows that Fidelity Chairman Ned Johnson and his daughter Abigail made multiple contributions to Republicans in 2004, as did COO Robert Reynolds. The site does yet carry information on individual donations for the current cycle. 

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