PACs Spending Record Money to Influence NY-16 Primary

The United Democracy Project, a pro-Israel super PAC, has spent $11.6 million in an effort to get George Latimer elected to Congress.  

June 18, 2024
2 min read
PACs have spent more than $13.8 million on media buys to try and influence the NY-16 primary. Photo courtesy Canva

Wonder why you haven’t been able to turn on your TV or look at your phone or computer the last few months without being subjected to a campaign ad?  

Outside groups have spent more than $13.8 million on media placements to influence the New York 16th Congressional District Democratic primary, according to Federal Election Commission filings.

Aggravated that your mailbox has been filled with enough 8.5” x 11” fliers lambasting or extolling Westchester County Executive George Latimer or U.S. Rep. Jamaal Bowman to fuel a bonfire? 

These same political action committees have invested almost $1.3 million on mailers to elect their favored candidates, federal filings show.

In total, independent groups have spent nearly $16.7 million on this race. Add to that the $10 million that has been contributed directly to the candidates and you see why this race has been dubbed the most expensive primary in the nation.

Latimer, 70, has outpaced Bowman 7 to 1 in attracting outside spending by political action committees, federal filings show.

The biggest outside investor in the race by far is the United Democracy Project (UDP), a pro-Israel super PAC affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee,  which has spent $11.6 million in an effort to get Latimer elected.  

A UDP spokesperson has called Bowman, 48, an “anti-Israel extremist” and the group has distributed mailers that say that “Bowman’s hostility toward Israel has blinded him to our pain.” UDP-funded ads supporting Latimer do not focus on the Middle East, but position him as a politician who delivers “real progressive results.”

The next biggest spender in the race is an unexpected player: Fairshake, a PAC backed by cryptocurrency companies, has spent $2.1 million opposing Bowman’s reelection. Bowman, a Yonkers native, has taken several votes in Congress opposing bills of interest to the crypto industry. Latimer, of Rye, is not on record voicing strong opinions in this area.

A number of progressive groups have supported Bowman, but none of them have spent in excess of $1 millions – Bowman’s progressive campaign slogan is “For the many, not the money.” Among the incumbent’s leading backers: Justice Democrats PAC ($687,186), The Working Families Party PAC ($677,738), and U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s Courage to Change PAC ($234,600).

Early voting in the primary is available in Rye – at the Resurrection Early Childhood Center at 88 Milton Road – and 24 other locations across Westchester through Sunday, June 23.  The primary will take place on Tuesday, June 25.  

Residents can find the location of their polling place at this Westchester County Board of Elections website.

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