This study examines the association between corporate political donations and firms financial distress, exploring whether this relationship varies across firms life cycle stages. Utilizing a dataset of the top 500 non-financial Australian companies from 2000 to 2022, we observe a negative association between corporate political donations and financial distress. Our results indicate that this relationship is more pronounced for firms in mature life cycle stages. Additional tests reveal that firms making political donations are associated with greater access to finance and lower cost of debt. Overall, our findings underscore the significance of corporate political donations as a determinant of corporate financial distress. This study deepens our understanding of the complex interplay between political donations, financial distress, and the life cycle stages of firms, contributing to academic discourse and advancing the field.