In the News

Let the games begin — Ted Cruz’s Super PAC haul

Apr 08, 2015

If it wasn’t clear that we’ve entered a new era in campaign finance cash, it sure is now.

To kickoff his presidential bid, Super PACs associated with Senator Ted Cruz announced a haul so massive, even a Republican veteran strategist called it “unbelievable.”

Mr. Cruz now has a staggering $31 million in his war chest. And that’s from what is thought to be largely from a single family.

Of course, who exactly is behind the money isn’t immediately clear. It is suspected that billionaire hedge fund investor Robert Mercer and his family is at the helm, with each family member controlling their own PAC dedicated to electing Cruz.

If that Super PAC “family” sounds unusual, it’s because it is. By financing the campaign in this way, it “hints at the determination of wealthy donors to exert more control of the super PACs,” meaning that wealthy donors are no longer content with simply bankrolling a campaign. They want a say in how their millions are spent, too.

In the wake of Citizens United, it has become abundantly clear that wealthy donors are calling more and more of the shots in our electoral process. And folks like Ted Cruz reaping the benefits.