More children making political gifts

WASHINGTON, Oct. 24 (UPI) -- Children from well-off families are showing a new interest in politics this year, contributing to a range of U.S. presidential candidates.

Campaign finance laws that set the maximum annual donation at $2,300 per donor to a campaign do not specify how old a giver must be. The Washington Post found at least one as young as 2 -- a niece of Chicago financier Elrick Williams gave $2,300 to Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill.

While it is a hard case to make for a 2-year-old, many parents say their children are giving money because they want to. Susan Henken of Dover, Mass., said her children used their own money to match her own $2,300 contribution to former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

"My children like to donate to a lot of causes. That's just how it is in my house," Henken said.

Cynics see something else.

"It's not difficult for a banker or a trial lawyer or a hedge fund manager to come up with $2,300, and they're often left wanting to do more," said Massie Ritsch of the Center for Responsive Politics. "That's when they look across the dinner table at their children and see an opportunity."

The Obama campaign said all gifts from children under 15 will be returned.