By Adam Pagnucco.
In Part One, I discussed the nature of independent expenditure (IE) entities and Super PACs, which may raise and spend unlimited sums on supporting and opposing candidates but are prohibited from coordinating with them. Now let’s identify eight of these entities who played in the primary elections for county executive, county council, sheriff and school board.
Affordable Maryland PAC
This is a Super PAC financed by the real estate industry. It began operations in 2022 by running negative TV ads against County Executive Marc Elrich and played in 2023 municipal elections held in Gaithersburg and Rockville. This one PAC accounted for a majority of all outside spending in our primary.
Supported candidates: Andrew Friedson, Scott Goldberg, Karla Silvestre, Jim McNulty, Jud Ashman
Opposed candidates: Will Jawando, Evan Glass, Marc Elrich, Laurie-Anne Sayles
Casa in Action PAC
This is a Super PAC which is legally separate from CASA Inc., a 501(c)(3) nonprofit receiving noncompetitive contracts from Montgomery County government. However, the Super PAC’s chair and treasurer are employees of the nonprofit.
Supported candidates: Will Jawando, Fatmata Barrie, Josie Caballero, Marc Elrich, Laurie-Anne Sayles, Debbie Spielberg, Izola Shaw
A Casa in Action digital ad for Jawando.
County Place PAC, Co
This Super PAC with a listed address of 6264 Montrose Road, North Bethesda spent $24,933 on a mailer for council at-large candidate Karla Silvestre.
Supported candidate: Karla Silvestre
The County Place PAC mailer for Silvestre.
Greater Capital Area Association of REALTORS MD IEC
This is a Super PAC associated with local realtors that ran digital ads and mail for its supported candidates.
Supported candidates: Andrew Friedson, Scott Goldberg, Karla Sillvestre, Jim McNulty, Jud Ashman, Drew Morrison
The realtors’ Super PAC mailer for Friedson.
Progressive Maryland Liberation Alliance PAC
This is a Super PAC chaired by Larry Stafford, who is the executive director of Progressive Maryland. Founded in 2018, it has played in elections all over the state since.
Supported candidates: Will Jawando, Fatmata Barrie, Josie Caballero, Marc Elrich, Laurie-Anne Sayles, Izola Shaw
Strong Maryland
This is a Super PAC financed by the Maryland State Education Association and the American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees. In MoCo, they are focused on stopping two candidates for school board.
Opposed candidates: Shuang Creed, Brenda Diaz
United Food and Commercial Workers International Union Working Families Advocacy Project
This is an IE entity associated with the parent union of MCGEO, which prioritized the defeat of Sheriff Maxwell Uy this cycle. It ran digital ads and mail on behalf of Will Milam, Uy’s opponent.
Supported candidate: Will Milam
Working Families Party PAC
This is an IE entity associated with the Working Families Party (WFP) of New York. Will Jawando’s U.S. Senate campaign contributed $115,000 to this entity before the primary started, and it later began spending money on Jawando’s behalf. That led to a complaint to the State Board of Elections, which cleared Jawando after hearing from his attorney. After the primary, WFP publicly listed its efforts to contact tens of thousands of voters on behalf of Jawando. In Baltimore County, this IE spent more than $700,000 to elect state’s attorney candidate Sarah David.
Supported candidates: Will Jawando, Josie Caballero, Izola Shaw
That’s the lineup of players I was able to identify. How much did they spend? And for whom? We will find out next.