New report released following Republicans filibuster of the DISCLOSE Act that would crack down on dark money in elections
Today, End Citizens United // Let America Vote Action Fund released an updated report on the dark money groups that have funded the growing efforts to capitalize on the Big Lie and the January 6 insurrection by passing laws that restrict the right to vote. ECU // LAV’s updated report comes following a Republican filibuster of the DISCLOSE Act, a central part of the For the People Act (S.1/H.R.1) that would combat the flood of dark money and allow the American people to see who is trying to buy our elections through anonymous attacks and misinformation.
Key points from ECU // LAV’s updated report include:
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Right-leaning dark money groups have already announced over $42 million in spending to restrict voting rights at the state level and block passage of the For the People Act (S.1/H.R.1), with $24 million of that coming from Heritage Action.
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Already, state legislators nationwide have introduced 371 bills that include restrictive voting proposals called for by the Heritage Foundation with 17 states having passed and signed into law 27 Heritage-inspired laws.
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40 dark money groups and dozens of right-leaning super PACs have publicly stated their opposition to the For the People Act, which would crack down on dark money. These groups spent over $120 million in dark money during just the 2018 cycle.
“After dark money groups tried and failed to buy the 2020 election, they turned their attention to undermining the fundamentals of American democracy by promoting the Big Lie to pass anti-voter bills in state legislatures nationwide,” said End Citizens United // Let America Vote President Tiffany Muller. “In light of these shocking details on the ways dark money groups are plotting to attack our democracy, it is critical that the Senate takes action to curb the influence of dark money in politics and fight back against their attempts to limit the freedom to vote. The Senate must pass the For the People Act, which includes the DISCLOSE Act’s dark money reforms, immediately, even if it means updating Senate procedure. As our report shows, the stakes are simply too high for inaction.”
ECU // LAV’s updated report comes after The New Yorker’s Jane Mayer uncovered the network of dark money groups that sought to overturn the 2020 election and are now trying to limit access to the ballot box for millions of Americans–in particular Black and brown Americans–and details the newest and most egregious voter restriction bills that state legislatures have passed, which in many cases were written by dark money groups like the Heritage Foundation. The report goes through the striking parallels between proposed legislation from the Heritage Foundation and the actual anti-voter bills that Republican-led state legislatures passed into law, a fact which Heritage Action Executive Director Jessica Anderson bragged about to her top donors in a leaked video.
The report also discusses the groups leading the opposition to the For the People Act, a critical voting rights and campaign finance reform package, which national polls–including polls from allies of Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell–consistently find has overwhelming bipartisan support. One of the main groups funding the opposition to the For the People Act is FreedomWorks, whose campaign is being led by Cleta Mitchell, an attorney recently exposed as a leading dark money proponent of the Big Lie and who was present on the call when then-President Donald Trump asked Georgia election officials to ‘find’ enough votes to sway the outcome of the election in his favor.
ECU // LAV has been leading the charge to pass the For the People Act, which passed the U.S. House and is being advanced in the U.S. Senate, thanks to the commitment of Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. At the start of the Senate battle to pass the For the People Act, all 50 Democrats united in support of the bill, while all 50 Republicans blocked even having a debate on the legislation.
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