A Citizen's Guide to Michigan Campaign Finance 2010
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A Citizen’s Guide to Michigan Campaign Finance 2010 Undisclosed political spending is a threat WARNING to democracy and the public interest. The Michigan Campaign Finance Network is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that conducts research and provides public education on money in Michigan politics Board of Directors John Chamberlin Eva Garza Dewaelsche Jan C. Dolan Patricia L. Donath John M. Koval H. Lynn Jondahl John P. Mayer Alma Wheeler Smith Susan Grimes Width Rich Robinson, Executive Director © September 2011 by Michigan Campaign Finance Network Data and information may be used for public education with attribution. This report was researched and written by Rich Robinson and Barbara R. Moorhouse. The work of the Michigan Campaign Finance Network is sustained by voluntary contributions from concerned Michigan citizens and the generous support of the Joyce Foundation of Chicago. This project was made possible by the Joyce Foundation. Michigan Campaign Finance Network 200 Museum Drive, Lansing, MI 48933 Phone: (517) 482-7198 | Email: [email protected] | Web: www.mcfn.org TABLE OF CONTENTS State Overview ............................................................................. 2 Political Action Committees ........................................................ 21 Table 1. Summary of Michigan State Campaign Finances, 2010 Cycle Table 15. Top 150 Michigan State Political Action Committees, 2010 Cycle Governor ...................................................................................... 4 Supreme Court ........................................................................... 25 Table 2. Republican Gubernatorial Primary Campaign Finance Summary, 2010 Cycle Table 16: Michigan Supreme Court Campaign Finance Summary, 2010 Cycle Table 3. Democratic Gubernatorial Primary Campaign Finance Summary, 2010 Cycle Table 17. Michigan Supreme Court Campaign Finance Summary, 2000-2010 Table 4. Gubernatorial General Election Campaign Finance Summary, 2010 Cycle Court of Appeals ......................................................................... 27 Secretary of State ......................................................................... 8 Circuit, District and Probate Courts .............................................. 28 Table 5. Secretary of State Campaign Finance Summary, 2010 Cycle Table 18. Summary of Circuit, District and Probate Court Campaign Finances, 2010 Attorney General ..........................................................................................9 Ballot Proposals ......................................................................... 30 Table 6. Attorney General Campaign Finance Summary, 2010 Cycle Table 19: Top Contributors: Citizens Protecting Michigan’s Constitution, 2010 Cycle Michigan Senate ........................................................................ 10 Federal Overview ....................................................................... 31 Table 7. Profile of Michigan Senate Campaigns, 2010 Cycle Table 20. Summary of Federal Major Party Campaign Finances, 2004-2010 Table 8. Most Expensive Michigan Senate Races, 2010 Cycle U.S. House of Representatives – Michigan ................................... 34 Michigan House of Representatives ............................................. 13 Table 21. MI Congressional Candidates’ Campaign Finance Summary, 2010 Cycle Table 9. Profile of Michigan House Campaigns, 2010 Cycle Table 22. Independent Spending in Michigan Congressional Elections, 2010 Table 10. Most Expensive Michigan House Races, 2010 Cycle Toward a System of Campaign Accountability .............................. 38 Education Boards ....................................................................... 16 Table 11. State Education Boards Campaign Finance Summary, 2010 Cycle Political Parties .......................................................................... 18 Table 12. Michigan Republican Party Campaign Finance Summary, 2006 – 2010 Table 13. Michigan Democratic Party Campaign Finance Summary, 2006 – 2010 Table 14. State Parties’ Candidate-focused Television Issue Advertising, 2010 Cycle Appendix A. Top Contributors: Rick Snyder for Governor, 2010 Cycle .......................................................................................................................40 Appendix B. Top Contributors: Ruth Johnson for Secretary of State, 2010 Cycle ......................................................................................................42 Appendix C. Top Contributors: Bill Schuette for Attorney General, 2010 Cycle .........................................................................................................43 Appendix D. Summary of Michigan Senate Candidates’ Campaign Finances, 2010 Cycle ........................................................................................44 Appendix E. Top Contributors: Winning Michigan Senate Candidates, 2010 Cycle ...................................................................................................46 Appendix F: Summary of Michigan House Candidates’ Campaign Finances, 2010 Cycle ..........................................................................................53 Appendices Appendix G: Top Contributors: Winning Michigan House Candidates, 2010 Cycle ....................................................................................................59 Appendix H. Top Contributors: Winning Candidates for Education Boards, 2010 Cycle ............................................................................................78 Appendix I. Top Contributors: Michigan Political Parties’ State Committees, 2010 Cycle..........................................................................................80 List of Appendix J. Top Contributors: Legislative Caucuses’ PACs, 2010 Cycle ......................................................................................................................81 Appendix K. Top Contributors: Largest Officeholders’ Leadership PACs, 2010 Cycle .................................................................................................84 Appendix L. Top Contributors: Winning Supreme Court Candidates, 2010 Cycle ......................................................................................................88 Appendix M. Top Contributors: Court of Appeals Candidates Who Raised Money, 2010 Cycle .................................................................................89 Appendix N. Contested Circuit Court Campaigns’ Finance Summaries, 2010 Cycle ..................................................................................................90 Appendix O. Contested District Court Campaigns’ Finance Summaries, 2010 Cycle .................................................................................................91 Appendix P. Contested Probate Court Campaigns’ Finance Summaries, 2010 Cycle .................................................................................................93 Appendix Q. Top Individual Contributors to Michigan Political Committees, 2010 Cycle ..........................................................................................94 A Citizen’s Guide to Michigan Campaign Finance 2010 STATE OVERVIEW The 2010 state political campaigns were not the PACs that were organized to redistribute most expensive in Michigan history. However, they $114 million raised in 2010 by the Republican did set a record as the least accountable campaigns Governors Association, a 527 committee. ever for the major statewide offices. Of $61 million While Michigan donors gave $8.6 million to spent in the races for governor, secretary of state, the RGA 527, including $5.4 million from the attorney general and justice of the Supreme Court, Michigan Chamber of Commerce, 98 percent $22.9 million was not disclosed in the State’s of contributions to the RGA MI 2010 PAC campaign finance reporting system. That amount were attributed to persons who do not reside paid for candidate-focused television issue in Michigan. The RGA MI 2010 PAC gave advertisements that the Michigan Department $5.3 million to the Michigan Republican Party of State does not consider to be campaign and $3 million to Rick Perry for Governor expenditures. Records of that spending were of Texas. The RGA 527 organization paid collected by the Michigan Campaign Finance $3.6 million for unreported candidate-focused Network from the public files of the state’s issue ads attacking Democrat Virg Bernero television broadcasters and cable systems. and supporting now Governor Rick Snyder. The PACs lifecycle from organization to Among the bellwether occurrences in the dissolution was only 13 months. 2010 election cycle: • Corporate PACs made their debut in Michigan • Three winners of statewide election won following the U.S. Supreme Court decision in television dominated campaigns without Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission buying a broadcast television advertisement and the related overturning of Austin v Michigan of their own. They were now Secretary of Chamber of Commerce. One corporate PAC, State Ruth Johnson, now Supreme Court Business Leaders for Michigan II, disclosed all Justice Mary Beth Kelly and Democratic its corporate donors as it made independent gubernatorial nominee Virg Bernero. Their expenditures totaling $85,000 in support of political parties provided the television two Republican Michigan Senate candidates, budgets, mostly outside the campaign finance David Hildenbrand and Tonya Schuitmaker. reporting system. The Michigan Realtors Association