COLUMBUS, Oh. – End Citizens United today endorsed Sherrod Brown for U.S. Senate. Throughout his career, Brown has been a champion for campaign finance reform fighting back against the disastrous effects of the Citizens United decision.
“When it comes to campaign finance reform, there are few bigger champions than Sherrod Brown. He’s seen billionaires and the corporate special interests throw everything they can at him – to the tune of a record-setting $40 million dollars. He’s beat them because he understands what the Big Money Super PACs never will – that it’s people that matter,” said Tiffany Muller, executive director for End Citizens United. “We’re proud to endorse Senator Brown and will fight alongside of him to return our democracy to the people.”
“No one fights harder against the distorting influence dark money plays in politics than Sherrod Brown, and that’s why special interest groups have made him their number one target,” said Justin Barasky, campaign manager of Friends Of Sherrod Brown. “Sherrod is thankful that End Citizens United – an organization dedicated to reforming our broken campaign finance system – is recognizing his commitment to this cause with their endorsement of his re-election. It’s an important reminder that in Sherrod, Ohioans have a champion in the Senate working everyday to stop dark money billionaires who care nothing about Ohio from exploiting our elections and economy.”
Brown saw the effects of money in politics first hand during his 2012 senate election, when he faced more than $40 million spent by outside groups – primarily through Super PACs and dark money organizations. As a co-sponsor of the Democracy is Strengthened by Casting Light on Spending in Election – or the Disclose Act – Brown fought back against the avalanche of secret spending in elections and fought to bring transparency to the electoral process. In opposition to Neil Gorsuch’s confirmation, Brown noted that he “…cannot support any nominee who does not recognize that corporations are not people” and voted against Gorsuch whose record suggests strong support for the continuation of unlimited and undisclosed spending in elections.
End Citizens United was established in March 2015 to counter the harmful effects of the Citizens United decisions and reform our campaign finance system. Last week, it announced that it has raised $4 million in the first quarter of 2017 and projects it will raise $35 million for the 2018 cycle, surpassing the $25 million it raised for the 2016 elections.
The grassroots group is entirely funded by small-dollar, grassroots donors and has grown to over 3 million members with an average contribution of $14, making it the 4th largest federal PAC of the 2016 cycle. With over 91,000 members across Ohio, ECU will help connect Brown’s campaign with local volunteers and activate its 330,000 small-dollar national donors to make sure he has the resources to win.
Information on Brown, including his answers to the ECU questionnaire, can be found here.