Cost of Electing President

How much does it cost to elect a President? Apparently tens of millions of dollars. Aside from the millions donated to campaigns for advertising, travel and such, look at the millions more spent on conventions. All just to elect the next president of an ever increasing country of excess with the agenda to put into power the person or persons that will best represent, not the people, but special interest groups. I have a crazy idea. How about all those donations go toward programs like education, health care, veterans and other silly things like that.