- Democrat Haley Stevens is so far benefiting the most from outside spending in Michigan’s US Senate race
- AIPAC-affiliated United Democracy Project has spent nearly $15 million supporting Stevens, opposing Abdul El-Sayed
- The race is considered one of the most competitive in the country, with Democrats vying to take on Republican Mike Rogers
Outside spending in Michigan’s US Senate race has topped $41 million, more than half of which has directly benefited Democrat Haley Stevens or attacked her primary opponent Abdul El-Sayed, federal disclosures show.
The top spender in the race so far is United Democracy Project, a political action committee affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). In a new Friday filing, the group reported spending nearly $15 million on the race to date, including $9.3 million to support Stevens and $5.7 million to oppose El-Sayed.
A separate political action committee, A Stronger Michigan, reported spending slightly more than $12 million so far in support of Stevens’ campaign. The nonprofit money-in-politics watchdog Sludge connected that group to Jefferies Murray, a corporate lobbyist whose firm represents Facebook parent company Meta and other high-profile clients.
About $10.7 million in combined outside spending from several groups has supported Republican candidate Mike Rogers, and another $2.3 million has benefited El-Sayed, the federal disclosures show.
Related:
- Fact check: El-Sayed, Stevens clash over cash in Senate debate
- What to know about Michigan’s most interesting primary
- McMorrow ends Senate campaign, narrowing Democratic primary
Most of the spending is getting poured into TV ads. The national ad-tracking firm AdImpact’s latest analysis of the Democratic Senate primary found $46.1 million in ad spending and reservations as of July 1, 74% of which supports Stevens.
Outside groups like super PACs — which can raise and spend unlimited money to support or oppose candidates, but cannot coordinate with or give directly to candidate campaigns — are required to file disclosures more frequently than candidate campaign committees during an active election cycle.
The eye-popping outside spending, particularly by AIPAC-affiliated groups, is a major point of contention in the Democratic primary.
El-Sayed, a longtime critic of corporate political contributions, has attacked Stevens for her corporate contributions and affiliation with AIPAC.
In a recent fundraising email, El-Sayed framed the race as a fight between people power and the establishment “essentially buying a Senate seat.”
Stevens sought to downplay that outside spending in a head-to-head debate with El-Sayed last week, saying that anyone supporting her campaign “is doing so because of my proven record of fighting for Michigan.”
“No one owns my vote, and no one owns my policies,” she said.
In that debate, Stevens countered that El-Sayed is benefiting from personal and familial wealth, arguing that he “has a super PAC that is run by his father-in-law that has spent millions of dollars on his behalf.”
El-Sayed’s father-in-law is a major donor to the Fighting for Michigan PAC, which has so far spent nearly $1.5 million on El-Sayed’s behalf. But the group is run by political strategists, according to PolitiFact, a nonpartisan fact-checking organization that found no indication El-Sayed’s relative is involved in the PAC’s operations.
Other organizations benefiting El-Sayed include PACs associated with Common Defense and National Nurses United, both groups that endorsed his candidacy.
Rogers, who is running unopposed in the GOP primary, has seen the most outside support so far from Americans for Prosperity, which has spent nearly $4.8 million on his behalf. Other groups that have reported pro-Rogers spending include the Great Lakes Conservative Fund and the Senate Leadership Fund.
Candidates and outside groups spending in the race are expected to file additional campaign finance reports by Wednesday, disclosing donors and other information ahead of the Aug. 4 primary.
Michigan’s US Senate race is expected to be one of the most competitive in the country. The winner of the Democratic primary — either Stevens or El-Sayed — will take on Rogers in November.
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