(FORTUNE Magazine) – Hey, tycoon. Want to look like a hotshot raising money for your favorite political candidate, without all the mess and bother? Then hire your own political fundraiser. Movie moguls David Geffen, Steven Spielberg, and Jeffrey Katzenberg do. They employ Andy Spahn to head corporate affairs at Dreamworks SKG. But the 45-year-old Spahn, who was once finance director for Gary Hart, also runs the trio's political machine and raises money for candidates they support.

Geffen is considered one of the most prolific financiers of the Democratic Party--he's raised more than $10 million since 1992. Yet it's Spahn, a longtime Democratic fundraiser in D.C., who does most of the groundwork. "If you're in the entertainment business, a call from Andy is one you want to return," says fellow fundraiser Terry McAuliffe.

High-profile Democratic supporters like having an operative on the payroll. In southern California, investor Ron Burkle of Yucaipa Cos. has Ari Swiller, 30; Haim Saban, CEO of Fox Family Worldwide, employs Laura Hartigan, 32, as his personal fundraiser. In Northern California, the Technology Network, a politically active group of Silicon Valley executives, retains Democrat Wade Randlett, 35, and Republican Lezlee Westine, 38.

Most electoral fundraising is done by volunteers. Still, professionals lurk in the background. Ted Welch, Lamar "Lamar!" Alexander's main moneyman (a volunteer), says these fundraisers-for-hire are "the people who make it happen." He's hired some of the best, including Agnes Warfield, 38, who helped manage this year's Republican gala, which raised $14.5 million. (She's also distantly related to Wallis Warfield Simpson, who inspired King Edward VIII's abdication.)

The GOP's best professional fundraisers are mostly women. Standouts include Cathy Blainey, 34, whose clients have included former Senator Alfonse D'Amato, Governor George Pataki, and now, Texas Governor George W. Bush. Another is Carla Eudy, 39, who's finding donors for Republican Senator John McCain's presidential bid. Oddly, Democratic fundraising pros tend to be men. No one knows why.

--Jeffrey H. Birnbaum