Utah independent Senator Evan McMullin is seeking to fire incumbent Republican Senator Mike Lee despite pledging not to hold a caucus with the Democrats if elected. It has millions of support from groups that align with leaders and Democrats.
Leading up to the midterm elections, the Super PAC, unaffiliated with Lee and McMullin’s campaigns, has been the subject of controversy as it spends millions in aggressive advertising on glossy mailers and local TV channels. The race is inundated with outside spending.
Campaign-funding disclosures filed Friday, covering the period through Oct. 19, show McMullin’s campaign raised $6.9 million and Lee’s campaign raised $8.6 million.
They spend a lot of money on their own campaign advertising, polls, consultants and staff, but candidates get a boost from independent spending committees that are not authorized to coordinate with their campaigns.
EVAN MCMULLIN PROMISES NOT TO CAUSE DEMOCRATIC PARTY IF WINNED IN UTAH
Utah Senator Independent Candidate Evan McMullin participates in a debate on the future of democracy and the American political system at the Salt Lake City Public Library on October 20, 2022.
(Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
The most active is a pro-McMullin super PAC called Put Utah First. We spent $5.1 million for the entirety of 2022, including $3 million from October 1st to October 19th.
The group received most of its funding from Blake Murray, former CEO of financial services technology firm Divvy, according to an Associated Press report. I support McMullin and co-host a fundraiser with Democratic Rep. Ben McAdams on Tuesday. The group also received her $250,000 from American Bridge’s Political Action Committee. American Bridge spent her $45 million nationwide on midterm elections, running abortion ads in Arizona, Georgia, Nevada, Ohio, and Pennsylvania.
Put Utah First received an additional $100,000 from the Republican Accountability PAC. The PAC also runs ads for Senate candidates such as Herschel Walker of Georgia and JD Vance of Ohio.
Put Utah First also received a total of $700,000 from members of the Cumming family who own POWDR, one of the largest ski resort operators in the Rocky Mountains. John Cumming, founder and chairman of POWDR. his wife, Christie; his mother, Annette; and his brother David are longtime Democratic donors, and the cycle also contributes to Planned Parenthood’s Political Action Committee, the Arizona Democratic Party and Arizona Senator Mark Kelly.
McMullin’s campaign paid DEM Firms more than $1.6 million despite calling himself an ‘independent’
The group’s advert features a move to fund veterans’ benefits and targets Lee over his vote against an appropriation bill set to ominous music. While he doesn’t mention his own funding sources, the Put Utah First ad accuses him of receiving donations for the campaign from special interest groups.
McMullin, who won support from the Utah Democratic Party in April, tried to portray himself as a moderate candidate in the race in an interview with Fox News on Monday. “is certainly responsible for the path we’re on and for inflation and the many other problems we face,” he said, adding that if elected, he would join the Democrats and Republicans. He said he would not hold a caucus.
McMullin’s campaign website, an outspoken critic of former President Donald Trump, said America’s “democratic republic is in jeopardy,” adding that “the division, extremism and A conspiracy now dominates our politics, creating dysfunction, chaos and instability in our politics.” Country. “
“As I’ve spent time with Utah people across the state over the past few weeks, I’ve felt their strong support and how much Biden’s inflation has hit them,” McMullin told Fox News on Tuesday. “They want to see a change in control in Congress and are determined to make their voices heard. I can feel the momentum building.”
Independent spending groups are also backing Republican Senate candidates as they defend Lee across the country and invest in ads and mailers that oppose McMullin. This includes Americans for Prosperity, Consumer Technology Association, Liberty Champions PAC and Crypto Freedom backed by the Koch Network. Bitcoin PAC in partnership with Club for Growth.
Republican Senators Mike Lee and Evan McMullin shake hands after a televised debate in Orem, Utah, Monday, October 17, 2022.
(AP Photo/Rick Bowmer)
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The conservative Growth Action Club PAC said it had spent more than $3.7 million against McMullin as of Oct. 19, and last week the total spending rose to more than $8 million.
Earlier this month, Fox News reported that McMullin’s campaign paid more than $1.6 million to Democratic companies, using the Democratic fundraising platform ActBlue, despite being an independent. , which indicated that McMullin had neglected to repay more than $600,000 in debt owed during the failed campaign.
Fox News’ Jessica Chasmar and Associated Press contributed to this article.