Stay Connected
Atlanta Black Star/News
NewsPolitics

Obama Getting More Money from Liberal Super PACs and Women

Posted byBy Nick Chiles | Published on: CommentsComments (0)

Liberal super PACs in support of President Obama began to close the spending gap last month with their conservative super PACs supporting Romney, according to an analysis by the website Open Secrets. Of the $21.5 million spent by the super PACs in June, conservative super PACs accounted for 53 percent while liberals accounted for 44 percent. The liberal super PACs made up 30 percent of spending in April and 35 percent in May, so the number has been steadily growing as the fundraising heats up.

But while Romney is doing better with the super PACs, Obama has a significant advantage among female donors above the $200 level.

Of the $20.2 million that Romney raised in June from contributions of more than $200, 27 percent of them were from women. By comparison, Obama raised $18 million in $200 donations in the same period, with 44 percent of that figure coming from women, according to an analysis by the Center for Responsive Politics. The analysis reveals the share of Romney’s fundraising from women has steadily declined since its height of 34 percent in February, while Obama’s increased from 41 percent in May (though its height was 46 percent earlier in the year).

Among the super PAC money, Obama is catching up because he is starting to get more money from the multi-millionaires. While Republicans still account for nine of the top ten contributions to super PACs in the last month, 12 of the top 30 contributors gave seven-figure amounts to the liberal super PACs.
Those big liberal donors include Fred Eychaner of Newsweb ($1.95 million, bringing his total contribution to $3.25 million), Irwin Jacobs, the co-founder of Qualcomm, and his wife Joan ($2 million, media mogul Haim Saban ($2 million) and actor Morgan Freeman ($1 million).
The top industry donor to the liberal Priorities in June was retirees, shelling out over $2.3 million. The TV, music and movies industry came in second with over $1.3 million in donations last month.

Romney again relied on donations from Wall Street but not as much as in earlier months. Wall Street still contributed over $1.9 million but was outdone by several conservative megadonors, placing them fourth on Restore’s list of top industry donors. The super PAC’s top sources for money last month were the casino and health professionals industries—mainly because Sheldon and Miriam Adelson donated a combined $10 million last month. Home builders came in at number three, because of $2 million from Texas construction magnate Bob Perry.

Democracy needs journalism it can trust.

This election season, the stakes are higher than usual — and so is the pressure on newsrooms to soften their coverage, stay quiet, or just disappear. Independent reporting, the kind that answers to readers instead of advertisers or political pressure, matters more in a moment like this, not less.

For over 14 years, Atlanta Black Star has stayed independent and reader-funded. We have no corporate owner and no shareholders telling us what to cover or how to cover it. That independence is also our biggest vulnerability: nothing protects it except readers choosing to fund it directly.

Newspaper ad revenue has fallen more than 80% since 2005, and local newsrooms are closing at a rate of roughly two a week nationwide. When outlets go under in a moment like this, it's rarely the independent, reader-funded ones that get to stick around.

We know a request for support isn't why you came here. But without readers choosing to fund this work directly, the depth of reporting we can do at home and abroad shrinks along with everyone else's. If you're not in a position to give, that doesn't change how much we value you as a reader.

If you are able to, a recurring contribution does more for us than a single one-time gift, because it lets us plan the next investigation instead of just the next invoice. It takes about 30 seconds, no long form, no account. Thank you for continuing to support independent journalism and freedom of the press.

Give once Give monthly Support another way

Related Stories

Back to top