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House Majority PAC
From Ballotpedia - Reading time: 10 min| House Majority PAC | |
 | |
| Basic facts | |
| Type: | Super PAC |
| Founder(s): | Alixandria Lapp |
| Year founded: | 2011 |
| Website: | Official website |
The House Majority PAC is a super PAC that aims to "help win back the House Majority for Democrats," according to the group's website. The organization is a successor to a parent group, the America's Families First Action Fund.[1]
Mission[edit]
As of October 2019, the mission of the organization listed on its official Facebook page read:[2]
"House Majority PAC's mission is to defend and expand the Democratic House majority by working with progressive allies and competing with the outside groups on the Right."[2]
Background[edit]
House Majority PAC was founded in 2011 to answer what its organizers saw as "the barrage of GOP outside spending and ensure that never again would groups funded by Karl Rove, the Koch Brothers, Sheldon Adelson and the like be able to drown out Democratic candidates."[3] The super PAC is associated with former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) who raised funds for the group in its early stages. It is also, according to Politico, seen as a sister group to the Senate Majority PAC, a super PAC associated with former Nevada Sen. Harry Reid (D).[4]
Work[edit]
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As a super PAC, the House Majority PAC works to influence elections by making independent expenditures and purchasing advertising. The group runs ads that support or oppose candidates for the U.S. House in an effort to regain a Democratic majority in the House.
2020 elections[edit]
Contributions[edit]
Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg (D) announced in December 2019 that he was contributing $10 million to House Majority PAC to support Democratic incumbents being targeted for supporting the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump (R).[5]
2018 elections[edit]
Expenditures[edit]
On October 9, 2018, House Majority PAC announced it would spend about $20 million across these 13 districts: CA-10 ($2.2 million), CA-25 ($800,000), CA-39 ($2.7 million), CA-45 ($800,000), CA-48 ($2.7 million), and CA-49 ($800,000), FL-26 ($2.2 million), MI-08 ($885,000), MI-11 ($544,000), NJ-07 ($1 million), NV-04 ($1 million), NY-19 ($741,000), and TX-32 ($2.3 million).[6]
2016 elections[edit]
Expenditures[edit]
During the 2016 election cycle, the House Majority PAC had spent a total of $47,470,121 in independent expenditures, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.[7]
| Top 10 largest House Majority PAC expenditures in 2016 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | State | Party | Office | Total | For | Against |
| Donald Trump |  |
President | $2,753,857 | $0 | $2,753,857 | |
| Stewart Mills | Minn. | |
U.S. House | $2,521,021 | $0 | $2,521,021 |
| Scott Garrett | N.J. | |
U.S. House | $2,366,092 | $0 | $2,366,092 |
| Brian Fitzpatrick | Pa. | |
U.S. House | $2,266,961 | $0 | $2,266,961 |
| Danny Tarkanian | Nev. | |
U.S. House | $2,124,182 | $0 | $2,124,182 |
| Claudia Tenney | N.Y. | |
U.S. House | $2,084,879 | $0 | $2,084,879 |
| Barbara Comstock | Va. | |
U.S. House | $1,909,690 | $0 | $1,909,690 |
| Bruce Poliquin | Maine | |
U.S. House | $1,863,263 | $0 | $1,863,263 |
| Emilio Huerta | Calif. |  |
U.S. House | $1,745,038 | $1,745,038 | $0 |
| Mike Coffman | Colo. | |
U.S. House | $1,734,087 | $0 | $1,734,087 |
2014 elections[edit]
During the 2014 election cycle, the House Majority PAC had spent a total of $29,422,890 in independent expenditures, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.[8]
| Top 10 largest House Majority PAC expenditures in 2014 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | State | Party | Office | Total | For | Against |
| Michael Grimm | N.Y. | |
U.S. House | $2,018,339 | $0 | $2,018,339 |
| Andy Tobin | Ariz. | |
U.S. House | $1,740,072 | $0 | $1,740,072 |
| Evan Jenkins | W.Va. | |
U.S. House | $1,727,802 | $0 | $1,727,802 |
| Lee Zeldin | N.Y. | |
U.S. House | $1,509,329 | $0 | $1,509,329 |
| Mike Coffman | Colo. | |
U.S. House | $1,417,124 | $0 | $1,417,124 |
| Nan Hayworth | N.Y. | |
U.S. House | $1,315,849 | $0 | $1,315,849 |
| Stewart Mills | Minn. | |
U.S. House | $1,242,383 | $0 | $1,242,383 |
| Doug Ose | Calif. | |
U.S. House | $1,175,560 | $0 | $1,175,560 |
| Bob Dold | Ill. | |
U.S. House | $1,038,646 | $0 | $1,038,646 |
| Carlos Curbelo | Fla. | |
U.S. House | $1,013,930 | $0 | $1,013,930 |
Airtime reserve[edit]
On April 18, 2014, the group announced that it reserved $6.5 million for fall 2014 television advertisements in two dozen districts.[9][10][11]
The targeted districts and amount spent included:[9][12]
- Arizona's 1st District: $420,785[13]
- Arizona's 2nd District: $138,693[13]
- Arizona's 9th District: $420,785[13]
- California's 7th District: $189,610
- California's 36th District: $112,219
- California's 52nd District: $512,190
- Colorado's 6th District: $425,330
- Florida's 2nd District: $232,120
- Florida's 18th District: $561,423
- Florida's 26th District: $175,894
- Iowa's 3rd District: $125,127
- Illinois' 10th District: $229,354
- Illinois' 13th District: $143,878
- Illinois' 17th District: $128,898
- Massachusetts' 6th District: $124,020
- Minnesota's 2nd District: $329,371
- Minnesota's 8th District: $354,265
- New Hampshire's 1st District: $162,253
- New Hampshire's 2nd District: $162,253
- New York's 1st District: $394,706
- New York's 11th District: $162,759
- New York's 18th District: $565,900
- New York's 24th District: $166,254
- Texas' 23rd District: $221,347
Targeted incumbents[edit]
House Majority PAC announced the following candidates as targets in the 2014 elections:[14][15][16]
- Michele Bachmann: (MN-06), prior to the announcement of her retirement
- Mike Coffman (Colorado): (CO-06)
- Gary G. Miller : (CA-31)
- Rodney Davis: (IL-13)
- Michael G. Fitzpatrick: (PA-08)
- Michael G. Grimm: (NY-11)
- Joe Heck: (NV-03)
- David Joyce: (OH-14)
- John Kline: (MN-02)
- Steve Southerland II: (FL-02)
John Kline[edit]
House Majority PAC launched its first paid attack on Rep. John Kline (R-Minn.) in June 2013. The ads criticized Kline for his position in favor of a proposal that Democrats said would exponentially increase student loan rates.[17] The campaign was the first paid attack from House Majority PAC during the 2014 cycle and the first attack on Kline, named as one of the PAC's top 10 targets for 2014.[17]
It launched Facebook posts, a promoted petition using the hashtag #StopScammingStudents and banner ads on local news sites calling for readers to sign a petition to tell the congressman to "stop scamming students," as well as running an ad on Pandora internet radio, targeted to residents of Kline's district.[17]
Support for incumbents[edit]
Nick Rahall[edit]
House Majority PAC launched an ad buy on December 10, 2013, for Nick Rahall (D) in West Virginia's 3rd Congressional District.[18] The ad ran throughout southern West Virginia for ten days and cost approximately $150,000. Of the ad, the super PAC's communications director, Andy Stone, said, “Right-wing, Koch Brothers-funded groups are spending big to prop up a two-time party-switcher, but Mountaineers know Nick Rahall is a fighter for southern West Virginia.” The super PAC went on to spend roughly $1 million in the district, more than in any other 2014 race it targeted.[19]
Ads on government shutdown[edit]
On October 4, 2013, House Majority PAC launched an ad attacking David Joyce (R-Ohio) when the government temporarily shut down.[20] The ad urges viewers to go to TellDaveJoyce.com and sign a petition to tell the congressman "the shutdown was wrong."[20] Of the ad, super PAC communications director Andy Stone said, “When Dave Joyce didn’t get his way, he decided to throw a temper tantrum and shut down the federal government. Northeast Ohioans deserve better than Joyce’s childlike behavior and political gamesmanship with the economy.”[20]
The ad was part of a series released attacking the top nine GOP targets for the shutdown. Along with Joyce, the nine others include Gary Miller, Mike Coffman, Rodney Davis, Mike Fitzpatrick, Michael Grimm, Joe Heck, John Kline, and Steve Southerland.[20][21][22]
The group launched a $70,000 ad buy against Steve Southerland in October 2013, saying he “should be ashamed” of supporting the shutdown.[23]
“Steve Southerland’s reckless Tea Party government shutdown cost our economy $24 billion, yet rather than back a bipartisan plan to end this manmade debacle, Southerland actually voted to drive our nation off an economic cliff,” House Majority PAC Communications Director Andy Stone said in a press release. "The jobs, retirement accounts and wellbeing of families, seniors and veterans in north and northwest Florida apparently didn’t merit Steve Southerland’s concern – even though Southerland was still getting his taxpayer-funded salary.”[23]
The PAC also targeted then-Speaker Boehner with a similar ad. “Speaker Boehner didn’t get his way and so, like a child, he threw a Tea Party-inspired temper tantrum and shut down the federal government,” said Andy Stone. “The American people are sick and tired of the intransigence and manufactured crises that have become all too common from Speaker Boehner and the House Republicans. Speaker Boehner should stop playing politics, end the nonsense and finally focus on the real-life consequences his government shutdown has caused Americans.”[24]
Ads on immigration reform[edit]
On July 18, 2013, House Majority PAC announced it would be targeting a trio of vulnerable House Republicans on immigration reform.[25] It will run commercials criticizing Reps. Gary Miller, Mike Coffman (Colorado) and Joe Heck. All three Republicans reside in districts with substantial Hispanic populations.[25][26]
The group will spend $175,000 on the commercials, which will air on Spanish-language broadcast stations in Los Angeles, Denver, and Las Vegas.[25] The ads provide an early preview into how Democrats plan to turn immigration into a key issue in the midterm elections, with the party branding the Republicans as unwilling to embrace reform in districts where Hispanics make up a significant part of the electorate.[25]
The spot targeting Miller says the California congressman “voted against the DREAM Act and to deport 800,000 young immigrants. He even wants to deny citizenship to the children of foreigners born in the U.S. With that record, Gary Miller is the one who needs to go.”[25] In Miller’s 31st District, Hispanics account for 44 percent of the voting age population. In Coffman’s 6th District, they make up 16 percent. In Heck’s 3rd District, Hispanics represent 13 percent.[25]
Expenditures[edit]
House Majority PAC spent a grand total of $29,422,890 in the 2012 election. Of that money, $3,906,609 was spent for Democrats, $679 was against Democrats, $0 was for Republicans, and $24,506,492 was used against Republicans. The following table details the top 10 independent expenditures made by House Majority PAC during the 2014 cycle.[27]
| Top 10 largest House Majority PAC expenditures in 2014 | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | State | Party | Office | Total | For | Against |
| Michael Grimm | N.Y. | |
U.S. House | $2,018,339 | $0 | $2,018,339 |
| Andy Tobin | Ariz. | |
U.S. House | $1,740,072 | $0 | $1,740,072 |
| Evan Jenkins | W.Va. | |
U.S. House | $1,727,802 | $0 | $1,727,802 |
| Lee Zeldin | N.Y. | |
U.S. House | $1,509,329 | $0 | $1,509,329 |
| Mike Coffman | Colo. | |
U.S. House | $1,417,124 | $0 | $1,417,124 |
| Nan Hayworth | N.Y. | |
U.S. House | $1,315,849 | $0 | $1,315,849 |
| Stewart Mills | Minn. | |
U.S. House | $1,242,383 | $0 | $1,242,383 |
| Doug Ose | Calif. | |
U.S. House | $1,175,560 | $0 | $1,175,560 |
| Bob Dold | Ill. | |
U.S. House | $1,038,646 | $0 | $1,038,646 |
| Carlos Curbelo | Fla. | |
U.S. House | $1,013,930 | $0 | $1,013,930 |
Donors[edit]
In 2014, two major donors to House Majority PAC were George Marcus and Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.). Marcus, president of Marcus Millichap Real Estate in California, gave $250,000 to the super PAC on April 25, 2014.[28] Rockefeller made a $250,000 personal donation in April 2014.[29][30]
Campaign advertisements[edit]
2013 elections[edit]
House Majority PAC spent a significant amount, more than $440,000, to boost Elizabeth Colbert-Busch’s unsuccessful bid for a House seat in South Carolina in the special election against former Gov. Mark Sanford (R).[31]
Donors[edit]
House Majority PAC reported on January 14, 2014, that it raised $7.5 million in 2013, more than double the $3 million it raised in 2011, preceding the 2012 election cycle.[32]
“House Majority PAC is committed to combating the efforts of the Koch Brothers and their right-wing allies, who are already stepping up to spend unprecedented sums in House races to promote their reckless agenda,” the PAC’s communication’s director, Andy Stone, said in a statement.[32]
2012 elections[edit]
According to the Sunlight Foundation, the House Majority PAC spent $30,752,440 on the 2012 elections. Of those funds, 70.66 percent achieved the desired result, based on Sunlight Foundation analysis.[33] Open Secrets also analyzed the success of 2012 general election cycle spending:[34]
Pre-election[edit]
In October 2012, the group announced that it intended to spend $8.4 million on ads in nine states to target Republican candidates. The nine states are Arizona, Indiana, Missouri, Montana, North Dakota, Virginia, Ohio, Connecticut and Nevada.[35]
Targeted incumbents[edit]
According to the Center for Responsive Politics, the House Majority PAC spent a grand total of $1,798,141 as of April 10, 2012, on the U.S. House elections. All of the spending was against Republican candidates.[36]
Details of that spending can be seen in the chart below.
| Name | State | Status | Total Spent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Charles Bass | New Hampshire | Incumbent | $68,831 |
| Ann Marie Buerkle | New York | Incumbent | $6,694 |
| Francisco Canseco | Texas | Incumbent | $7,775 |
| Robert Cornilles | Oregon | Challenger | $297,662 |
| Jane Corwin | New York | Challenger | $373,566 |
| Chip Cravaack | Minnesota | Incumbent | $92,472 |
| Rick Crawford | Arkansas | Incumbent | $14,941 |
| Sean Duffy | Wisconsin | Incumbent | $83,187 |
| Blake Farenthold | Texas | Incumbent | $7,022 |
| Paul Gosar | Arizona | Incumbent | $8,936 |
| Tim Griffin | Arkansas | Incumbent | $61,861 |
| Joe Heck | Nevada | Incumbent | $43,848 |
| Bill Johnson | Ohio | Incumbent | $24,980 |
| Steven King | Iowa | Incumbent | $9,234 |
| Tom Latham | Iowa | Incumbent | $394,744 |
| Dan Lungren | California | Incumbent | $77,577 |
| Bobby Schilling | Illinois | Incumbent | $10,135 |
| Scott Tipton | Colorado | Incumbent | $30,459 |
| Bob Turner | New York | Incumbent | $163,412 |
| Allen West | Florida | Incumbent | $20,805 |
Expenditures[edit]
House Majority PAC spent a grand total of $30,470,122 in the 2012 election. Of that money, $845,144 was spent for Democrats, $0 was against Democrats, $0 was for Republicans, and $29,624,978 was used against Republicans.[37]
| Top 10 largest House Majority PAC expenditures in 2012[37] | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Party | State | Office | Total | For | Against | Desired Result |
| Allen West | |
FL | House | $2,375,691 | $0 | $2,375,691 |  |
| Chip Cravaack | |
MN | House | $1,468,799 | $0 | $1,468,799 | |
| Jim Renacci | |
OH | House | $1,381,404 | $0 | $1,381,404 |  |
| Nan Hayworth | |
NY | House | $1,045,850 | $0 | $1,045,850 | |
| Robert Dold | |
IL | House | $1,028,241 | $0 | $1,028,241 | |
| Judy Biggert | |
IL | House | $1,021,827 | $0 | $1,021,827 | |
| Mike Coffman (Colorado) | |
CO | House | $962,494 | $0 | $962,494 | |
| Brian Bilbray | |
CA | House | $906,196 | $0 | $906,196 | |
| Randy Altschuler | |
NY | House | $861,810 | $0 | $861,810 | |
| Steven King | |
IA | House | $768,418 | $0 | $768,418 | |
Campaign advertisements[edit]
Donors[edit]
Organizations[edit]
The top five donors to the House Majority PAC during the 2012 election cycle were:[38]
| Top 5 Donors to House Majority PAC, 2012[38] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Occupation/Employer | Total | From Individuals | From Organizations |
| Newsweb Corp | $4,250,000 | $4,250,000 | $0 |
| Euclidean Capital | $1,500,000 | $1,500,000 | $0 |
| Carpenters & Joiners Union | $1,225,000 | $0 | $1,225,000 |
| Laborers Union | $1,167,000 | $0 | $1,167,000 |
| Paloma Partners | $1,150,000 | $1,150,000 | $0 |
Industries[edit]
The top five industries donating to the House Majority PAC during the 2012 election cycle were:[39]
| Top 5 Donors to House Majority PAC, 2012[39] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Industry | Total | From Individuals | From Organizations |
| Printing & Publishing | $4,807,750 | $4,807,750 | $0 |
| Building Trade Unions | $3,452,500 | $0 | $3,452,500 |
| Public Sector Unions | $2,829,000 | $0 | $2,829,000 |
| Securities & Investment | $2,595,200 | $2,550,200 | $45,000 |
| Lawyers/Law Firms | $2,541,950 | $1,921,450 | $620,500 |
Billionaire investor George Soros donated $75,000 to the PAC in 2010.[40]
Leadership[edit]
As of April 2019, the following individuals were listed as the leadership for the House Majority PAC on the organization's website:[41]
- Robby Mook, President
- Abby Curran Horrell, Executive director
- Courtney Ryan, Deputy Executive Director for Finance
- Elis Ribeiro, Chief of Staff
- Jeb Fain, Communications director
Legal status[edit]
House Majority PAC is a super PAC. A super PAC is a political committee that can solicit and spend unlimited sums of money. A super PAC cannot contribute directly to a politician or political party, but it can spend independently to campaign for or against political figures. These committees are also called independent expenditure-only committees. A super PAC is not legally considered a political action committee (PAC) and as such is regulated under separate rules.[42][43]
Recent news[edit]
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'House Majority PAC'. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also[edit]
External links[edit]
Footnotes[edit]
- ↑ House Majority PAC, "Official Website," accessed April 10, 2012
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Facebook, "House Majority PAC, posted December 11, 2018," accessed October 24, 2019
- ↑ House Majority PAC, "Our Story," accessed July 27, 2016
- ↑ Politico, "Pelosi, Reid raise Super PAC cash," June 27, 2011
- ↑ CBS News, "Mike Bloomberg gives $10 million to help endangered House Democrats," December 11, 2019
- ↑ House Majority PAC, "HMP Launches $20 Million Media Blitz in 13 Districts," October 9, 2018
- ↑ Center for Responsive Politics, "House Majority PAC, Independent Expenditures, Communication Costs and Coordinated Expenses," accessed July 17, 2017
- ↑ Center for Responsive Politics, "Independent Expenditures, Communication Costs and Coordinated Expenses," accessed July 17, 2017
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Washington Post, "Dem super PAC reserves $6.5 million in fall air time for key House races," accessed April 21, 2014
- ↑ News Max, "Democrat Super PAC Banks $6.5M for TV Ads in 24 Key House Races," accessed April 21, 2014
- ↑ Sacramento Bee, "The Buzz: Democratic super PAC reserves TV airtime in California," accessed April 21, 2014
- ↑ Roll Call, "Where Is Democratic Super PAC Spending Money? These 24 Districts Get Fall TV Reservations," accessed April 21, 2014
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 13.2 Arizona Starnet, "House Majority PAC to spend $1M on ads in October," accessed May 13, 2014
- ↑ Roll Call, "House Majority PAC Announces Top 2014 GOP Incumbent Targets" accessed July 16, 2013
- ↑ The Hill, "Dem super PAC hitting nine House Republicans on shutdown," accessed October 4, 2013
- ↑ KWTV, "Democratic Group Airs Shutdown Ads Targeting GOP Lawmakers," accessed October 4, 2013
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 The Hill, "House Majority PAC launching first paid attack against Kline on student loans" accessed July 17, 2013
- ↑ The House Majority PAC, "House Majority PAC To Air WV-03 Ad," accessed December 11, 2013
- ↑ Brennan Center, "Dark Money Groups Dominate Independent Spending in House Toss-Up Races", July 30, 2014
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 20.2 20.3 The Hill, "House Majority PAC hits Rep. Joyce with crying baby ad," accessed October 4, 2013
- ↑ The Hill, "Dem super PAC hitting nine House Republicans on shutdown," accessed October 4, 2013
- ↑ KWTV, "Democratic Group Airs Shutdown Ads Targeting GOP Lawmakers," accessed October 4, 2013
- ↑ 23.0 23.1 Saint Peters Blog, "House Majority PAC launches new TV ad against incumbent Steve Southerland," accessed October 21, 2013
- ↑ The House Majority PAC, "House Majority PAC To Air TV Ad Hitting Speaker John Boehner For His Government Shutdown Temper Tantrum," accessed October 7, 2013
- ↑ 25.0 25.1 25.2 25.3 25.4 25.5 Politico, "Ads target 3 House Republicans on immigration" accessed July 18, 2013
- ↑ The House Majority PAC "Press Release" accessed July 19, 2013
- ↑ Center for Responsive Politics, "House Majority PAC Recipients, 2014," accessed July 27, 2016
- ↑ Roll Call, "A $5 Million Check Fuels Super PAC," accessed May 26, 2014
- ↑ Politico, "Jay Rockefeller donates to Democratic super PAC," accessed April 19, 2014
- ↑ Federal Election Commission, "Senate Majority PAC," accessed April 19, 2014
- ↑ Politico, "House Democrats' super PAC raises $3 million" accessed July 16, 2013
- ↑ 32.0 32.1 Politico, "House Majority PAC nets $7.5M in 2013," accessed January 14, 2014
- ↑ Sunlight Foundation, "Outside spenders' return on investment," November 14, 2012
- ↑ OpenSecrets, "House Majority PAC," accessed July 16, 2013
- ↑ Majority PAC 2012 "EXPANDING THE SENATE MAP, MAJORITY PAC LAUNCHES $8.4 MILLION, NINE-STATE CAMPAIGN," October 2012
- ↑ Center for Responsive Politics, "House Majority PAC Independent Expenditures," accessed April 10, 2012
- ↑ 37.0 37.1 Open Secrets, "House Majority PAC Recipients, 2012," accessed July 16, 2013
- ↑ 38.0 38.1 Open Secrets, "Top Organizations Donating to House Majority PAC, 2012," accessed July 16, 2013
- ↑ 39.0 39.1 Open Secrets, "Contributions to House Majority PAC Industry Breakdown, 2012," accessed July 16, 2013
- ↑ The Fiscal Times, "Key Democratic Donors Turned Off by PAC Tactics," April 8, 2012
- ↑ House Majority PAC, "House Majority PAC Announces Senior Leadership Team," accessed April 8, 2019
- ↑ The Atlantic, "The New York Times' Disingenuous Campaign Against Citizens United," February 24, 2012
- ↑ The New York Times, "Who's Financing the 'Super PACs?" May 7, 2012
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