“Zephyr Teachout says she is against Super PACs despite taking money from Super PAC donors”
Some of Teachout’s donors also gave to super PACs
Zephyr Teachout has been a vocal opponent of super PACs. For a short time last year the Democrat even headed a super PAC whose goal was to end all super PACs.
But the National Republican Congressional Committee said that hasn’t stopped her from accepting contributions from those who gave to Super PACs.
“Zephyr Teachout says she is against Super PACs despite taking money from Super PAC donors,” the NRCC wrote in a blog post.
Getting big money out of politics has been a central theme of her campaign to represent the 19th Congressional District, located in New York State’s Hudson Valley and Catskills regions, like it was when she ran for governor in 2014.
Super PACs are able to accept and spend unlimited amounts of money in elections.
Is the National Republican Congressional Committee right? Has her campaign accepted money from super PAC donors?
Teachout’s donors
The National Republican Congressional Committee names 16 people it says donated to Teachout’s campaign and to super PACs. We found the donors in Teachout’s campaign finance filings. Altogether, the 16 donors have given $67,300 to Teachout. That’s about 2 percent of the $3.2 million she has raised, according to her latest filing.
The 16 Teachout contributors who gave money to super PACs contributed at least $61 million to super PACs. Two donated $10,000 or less to super PACs. In 2016, seven of the donors gave to super PACs. The other nine did not.
Among the 16 donors are billionaire George Soros and members of his family.
Super PAC support
Teachout has received backing from one super PAC: National Nurses United. It reported spending almost $47,000 in digital ad buys for the Democrat this year.
Teachout’s campaign says Faso has received more help from super PACs. New York Wins reported spending close to $1 million in ads and mailers against his primary opponent. The group has not reported spending anything against Teachout.
Another super PAC, Congressional Leadership Fund, spent more than $2.7 million against Teachout in mail and media placement since the June primary.
“You know I’m running against John Faso, but we’re really running against super PACs,” Teachout said at a campaign event in August.
Our ruling
In a series of blog posts, the National Republican Congressional Committee said “Zephyr Teachout says she is against Super PACs despite taking money from Super PAC donors.”
We cross-checked 16 donors to Teachout’s campaign with their donations to super PACs. We found all of them also donated to super PACs.
We rate this claim as True.
https://www.sharethefacts.co/share/d71ac40c-ac62-4894-acb4-74f2affc8a90
Our Sources
Blog posts from the NRCC on Teachout’s campaign contributions, Aug. 24, 2016 - Sept. 21, 2016, Accessed Sept. 23, 2016
Email conversation with Chris Pack from the National Republican Congressional Committee
Phone conversation with Alexis Grenell from the Zephyr Teachout campaign
Data on contributions from the Center for Responsive Politics and the Federal Elections Commission, Accessed Sept. 26, 2016
Contributors to the New York Wins super PAC, Center for Responsive Politics, Accessed Sept. 28, 2016
Data on independent expenditure spending (super PACs) from ProPublica’s Election Bot and the Federal Elections Commission, Accessed Sept. 27, 2016
Zephyr Teachout’s campaign committee, which includes quarterly filings of itemized contributions, Accessed Sept. 27, 2016
