What special interest groups and deep-pocketed donors have opened their wallets so far in 2022 to influence New Jersey’s congressional primaries?
Among them are cryptocurrency executives who shelled out six figures to prop up a U.S. senator’s son running for an open New Jersey House seat. And a shadowy group tied to the Democratic establishment that has stepped in to protect Democrats facing progressive challengers — and emphasize the ties between a Republican candidate and Trump. And there's a candidate’s mother who poured $2 million into a super PAC to boost her son’s chances to win a South Jersey seat.
Candidates running for federal office face limits on how much money their campaigns can accept, so it takes valuable time to raise enough money to pay staff salaries and afford ads that increase name recognition. But there’s a large workaround: independent spending.
A person can donate only up to $2,900 directly to an individual candidate during the primary campaign and $2,900 more during the general election campaign. Corporations and unions can’t donate to a politician, unless they collect money out of employees’ or members’ paychecks and give through what’s called a political action committee. Those PACs can contribute up to $5,000 a year.
But anyone other than foreign entities can create an “outside group” such as a super PAC or a 501(c)(4) nonprofit to raise and spend as much money as they want, as long as they don’t coordinate with the candidate — or share messaging, resources or strategies — and they follow the appropriate tax laws.
These groups can swing a race in their preferred candidate’s favor by paying for ads that espouse a candidate's positions. Yet aside from a required disclaimer that says the outside group paid for the ad, these ads can be virtually indistinguishable from what a campaign itself puts out.
And such outside groups require only one large bankroller to fund the work that could take a candidate dozens of phone calls to raise on his or her own.
Independent groups have spent nearly $1.3 million in New Jersey congressional races so far during the current cycle, with those boosting liberal candidates spending nearly twice as much as conservative groups, or $827,000 compared with $450,000.
Here’s what you should know about the groups that already graced Garden State mailboxes, computer screens and phone lines with congressional campaign ads and other materials, according to Federal Election Commission filings, and which may crop up again before the Nov. 8 general election:
Opportunity for All Action Fund
- Type: 501(c)(4)
- Spent: $153,000 to oppose Republican challenger Frank Pallotta in the 5th Congressional District and $70,000 to back Democratic Rep. Donald Payne Jr. in the 10th Congressional District
- Donors: Unknown
“A vote for Frank Pallotta means the return of Donald Trump.”
“Frank Pallotta is a Trump Republican and would be an important backer for Trump’s agenda and values in Congress.”
This Democratic dark money group wrote these captions on digital ads in the days before New Jersey’s primary, trying to link Donald Trump to Republican Frank Pallotta, who won the nomination and will face incumbent Josh Gottheimer in November — a rematch from two years ago, when Gottheimer won by 7.6 points.
It’s a message similar to what Gottheimer’s campaign pushed out in flyers during Pallotta’s primary against former U.S. Marine Nick De Gregorio — the flyers displayed Trump’s 2020 endorsem*nt of Pallotta.
Last May, De Gregorio accused Gottheimer of waging a "Putin-style disinformation campaign" to confuse voters about who the "true conservative" is in the campaign since Pallotta was endorsed by Trump in 2020, not in this race. "He’s trying to put his thumb on the scale," De Gregorio said of Gottheimer’s ads.
According to an analysis by OpenSecrets, Democratic Party groups and nonprofits spent almost $44 million in five states' Republican primaries since July to elevate far-right candidates, betting Democrats will more easily defeat them in the general election.
The directors of Opportunity for All Action Fund, which was formed in August 2021, include Patti Solis Doyle, a longtime aide to Hillary Clinton; Darrel Thompson, senior staffer to former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and partner at government relations firm theGROUP; and Mike McKay, a lobbyist and founding partner of Empire Consulting, according to the nonprofit’s Washington, D.C., incorporation filing.
As a social welfare nonprofit, Opportunity for All Action Fund does not legally have to report who funds it. Solis Doyle and Thompson did not respond to questions about the group’s donors or strategy. Gottheimer, a former speechwriter for President Bill Clinton, received campaign help in his first run for Congress in 2016 from Solis Doyle, who hosted a fundraiser for him at her home, according to The New York Times.
The nonprofit also spent $70,000 in the 10th Congressional District to support Democratic Rep. Donald Payne Jr. in his primary against political organizer Imani Oakley and author Akil Khalfani.
Overall, the nonprofit poured more than $917,000 into digital advertising, direct mail and phone banks in the two New Jersey races, as well as backing two Democratic incumbents who bested their primary challengers: Rep. Dina Titus in Nevada and Rep. Danny Davis in Illinois.
Its sparse, one-page website with an American flag and flagpole background says the group’s “mission is to unite all Americans into action around shared values of economic and social empowerment.”
Center Forward Committee
- Type: Super PAC
- Spent: $50,000 to support Democratic Rep. Mikie Sherrill in the 11th Congressional District
- Donors: Blue Dog PAC, American Society of Anesthesiologists, Chevron, unknown
The super PAC shelled out $50,000 on digital ads backing Mikie Sherrill — who ran unopposed in her primary — a slice of the $1.2 million the group spent to support moderate Democrats in House races in Oregon, Georgia, and California.
The bulk of Center Forward Committee’s funds went to back incumbent centrist Democrat Rep. Kurt Schrader in Oregon, who ultimately lost to attorney Jamie McLeod-Skinner, whom the group spent $650,000 opposing.
This cycle, Chevron pitched in $100,000 to the group; the American Society of Anesthesiologists donated $75,000; and Blue Dog Political Action Committee, a group of 18 moderate Democrats including Sherrill, donated $500,000.
Some of the Center Forward Committee’s donor names are shrouded in mystery: $1.4 million this cycle comes from its partner 501(c)(4) nonprofit called “Center Forward,” which does not have to report who funds it. Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, a drug company lobbying group, reported donating millions to the nonprofit in its tax filings in the past few years.
According to its website, Center Forward’s chairman is former Rep. Robert “Bud” Cramer, D-Ala., now a lobbyist at FTI Consulting, and its CEO is Cori Kramer, former chief of staff for two moderate Democratic House members, Reps. Brad Ellsworth of Indiana and Mike Ross of Arkansas.
Protect our Future PAC
- Type: Half PAC, half super PAC
- Spent: $250,000 to support Democrat Rob Menendez in the 8th Congressional District
- Donors: Samuel Bankman-Fried, Nishad Singh, Everytown for Gun Safety Fund, David Eth
The hybrid PAC bankrolled by a cryptocurrency billionaire dedicated close to 1% of its $23.7 million in total spending to back Rob Menendez Jr., the son of U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez. Menendez Jr. secured the Democratic nomination in his race to succeed retiring Rep. Albio Sires.
Samuel Bankman-Fried, founder and CEO of cryptocurrency exchange FTX, poured $27 million into the group. According to an interview with Politico, the 30-year-old investor has spent about $40 million on campaigns this year, propping up candidates “who commit to making pandemic preparedness funding a top issue, and people willing to work across the aisle to achieve it.”
In response to questions about why he chose to spend money through a super PAC backing Menendez, Bankman-Fried said in an email, "Rob Menendez is a champion of pandemic prevention."
In his email, he included a quote from Menendez where he said in a press release that he would work with the nonprofit Guarding Against Pandemics — formed by Bankman-Fried's brother, Gabe — "to ensure that we are prepared to stop future pandemics and that our state, county, and local governments have the resources they need from the federal government."
Protect our Future also received $1 million fromNishad Singh, director of engineering for FTX, and $56,000 from Michael Bloomberg’s gun control group, Everytown for Gun Safety Fund.
The PAC’s biggest gamble failed. It spent $11.4 million in Oregon’s 5th Congressional Districtto help Carrick Flynn, who lost his primary to Oregon state Rep. Andrea Salinas.
Congressional Leadership Fund
- Type: Super PAC
- Spent: $134,000 backing Republican Tom Kean Jr. in the 7th Congressional District
- Donors: American Action Network, Kenneth Griffin, Patrick Ryan, Stephen Schwarzman, Timothy Mellon
The super PAC arm of the Republican Party spent $134,000 to help Tom Kean Jr. in his competitive race against incumbent Democrat Tom Malinowski in New Jersey's 7th Congressional District.
A video on the group’s website blasts Malinowski for stock trades the congressman made, including shares in a medical-diagnostic company that manufactures COVID-19 tests. An eerie voiceover says, “While New Jerseyans were dying, Tom Malinowski was making a killing.”
The Congressional Leadership Fund raised $156 million in the last year and a half. Its largest checks came from American Action Network — a conservative dark money nonprofit that received millions from PhRMA in the past, according to OpenSecrets — which gave $28 million; hedge fund manager and Citadel CEO Kenneth Griffin, who donated $18.5 million; Patrick Ryan, retired chairman of multinational services firm Aon Corporation, who donated $10 million; Stephen Schwarzman, chairman and CEO of global private equity firm The Blackstone Group, who donated $10 million; and Timothy Mellon, chairman of transportation holding company Pan Am Systems, who gave $10 million.
Garden State Advance
- Type: Super PAC
- Spent: $46,000 to back Republican Bob Healey in his race against incumbent Andy Kim in the 3rd Congressional District.
- Donors: Ellen Healey, Jonathan Lumbert, Craig Beresin, Stephen Cordasco, Gilday Freeman
Ellen Healey, the mother of Republican congressional candidate Bob Healey, wrote a $2 million check to a super PAC boosting her son’s campaign to unseat Andy Kim in New Jersey's 3rd Congressional District. The donation was first reported by Politico.
The group spent $46,000 on text messages and mailers backing Healey in the days leading up to his primary, where the yacht manufacturer and former punk band frontman defeated his two opponents, Bellmawr gym owner Ian Smith and lawyer Nicholas Ferrera.
The super PAC collected another $25,000 donation from Jonathan Lumbert, who heads a Philadelphia-based investment management firm called JL Squared Group LLC. Craig Beresin, managing director of financial services firm UBS Americas, donated $5,000, and Stephen Cordasco and Gilday Freeman, both of financial planning firm Cordasco Financial Network, each gave $2,500.
FEC filings show the group was created in March 2022. New Jersey fundraiser Theresa Mondella is listed as treasurer, and political consultant Peter Sheridan Jr. of Red Maverick Media is the group’s executive director.
This cycle, pro-Kim outside groups — Madison, New Jersey-based super PAC Action Together PAC and Stacey Wolfe-Kalb — spent less than $4,000 backing the congressman. In the 2018 and 2020 cycles, groups linked to the Democratic Party, such as the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and House Majority PAC, spent millions on pro-Kim messaging.
VoteVets.org
- Type: Half PAC, half super PAC
- Spent: $280,000 backing Sherrill in New Jersey's 11th Congressional District
- Donors: Senate Majority PAC, United Association Political Issues Fund, Joshua Bekenstein, Arthur Kern, June Trone, Deborah Simon
Rep. Mikie Sherrill, a former U.S. Navy helicopter pilot, received a boost of $280,000 from the progressive veterans group that was formed in 2006 by Iraq war veterans who opposed President George W. Bush’s handling of the war.
The PAC raised more than $13 million in the 2022 cycle. Among the donors were the Democratic super PAC helping to elect liberals to the Senate, SMP, which pitched in $3.2 million; the labor union group United Association Political Issues Fund, which gave $525,000; and Joshua Bekenstein, co-chairman of Bain Capital, who gave $500,000.
VoteVets has spent close to $10 million this election in House races across the country, including in Georgia, Michigan, Hawaii, Pennsylvania and California.
Autism Hear Us Now
- Type: Super PAC
- Spent: $214,000 backing Republican Rep. Chris Smith in New Jersey's 4th Congressional District
- Donors: Majority small-dollar donors
The nonpartisan super PAC backs candidates who support legislation that affects people with autism, such as strengthening training for special needs teachers and education for first responders.
The group has spent a total of $452,000 backing three candidates: Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J.; Rep. Terri Sewell, D-Ala.; and Rep. Julia Brownley, D-Calif.
Autism Hear Us Now raised $1.3 million this cycle, with all but $29,000 of those donations coming from small-dollar donors, people who give less than $200 each and don’t have to report their names on FEC filings.
Firefighters Support Association
- Type: Super PAC
- Spent: $29,000 backing Kean in the 7th Congressional District
- Donors: Majority small-dollar donors
The group seeking to elect candidates “that have a proven track record of supporting our nation’s firefighters” spent $29,000 backing Kean, who was a volunteer firefighter and emergency medical technician. The super PAC’s website says the group endorses policies to provide firefighters with better equipment and increase line-of-duty death benefits to first responders’ families.
A majority of the super PAC’s $692,000 in fundraising comes from small-dollar donations under $200.
Drain the DC Swamp
- Type: Super PAC
- Spent: $16,000 attacking Republican Rep. Chris Smith in New Jersey's 4th Congressional District
- Donors: Tatnall Hillman
The far-right super PAC is targeting Republicans who voted for a bipartisan Jan. 6 commission, according to the Daily Beast, including $16,000 to oppose Smith, who voted in favor of the independent investigation.
Of the $2.7 million the super PAC raised, $2.6 million came from Tatnall Hillman, an Aspen, Colo.-based conservative megadonor and industrial heir.
National Right to Life Victory Fund
- Type: Super PAC
- Spent: $15,000 backing Republican Rep. Chris Smith in New Jersey's 4th Congressional District
- Donors: Small-dollar donors, National Right to Life Committee
The anti-abortion group spent $15,000 supporting Smith, who is co-chair of the Congressional Pro-life Caucus and author of legislation to ban the use of federal tax dollars to fund abortion.
More than half of the $703,000 that the super PAC raised this cycle came from small-dollar donors. Another $98,000 was transferred from the group’s nonprofit arm, the National Right to Life Committee. William and Maria Pincus together donated $15,000. William is the president of North Carolina Right to Life.
