Who’s backing PACs in N.M.?

Groups funded by wealthy donors have significant war chests heading into November election

A wealthy entrepreneur has been giving away his fortune for decades, and now his efforts are propping up New Mexico’s best-funded political action committee.

Better Future for New Mexico sprouted up just this election season, backed groups in some of the most contentious legislative primaries in the state and has quickly emerged as the political action committee with the most money heading into November.

The group had nearly $420,000 on hand by the end of June, according to campaign finance reports filed last week.

All that money signals liberal candidates could have big backing in the general election.

Most of the PAC’s funding — $300,000 — has come from the Civic Participation Action Fund. The fund was created a few years ago by the Atlantic Philanthropies, a coalition of charities financed by Chuck Feeney.

A New Jersey native, Feeney was a radio operator in the Air Force, went to Cornell University on the GI Bill and made a fortune opening duty-free shops. In the 1980s, he transferred a stake in his business to the Atlantic Philanthropies, which he had established. Feeney did so secretly, leading Forbes magazine to describe him as the “James Bond” of philanthropists.

The Atlantic Philanthropies has since become known for donating more than

$8 billion to charities and other causes.

In 2014, Atlantic Philanthropies announced one of its charities had dedicated $50 million to setting up the Civic Participation Action Fund, which describes itself as “advancing democracy through civic engagement among people of color.”

“As we face ever-more-divisive debates about the role of Muslims and immigrants in America, the need for federal aid to help Planned Parenthood operate, and police brutality toward citizens in Chicago, Baltimore, New York, and elsewhere, it’s clearer than ever why foundations need to pour money into advocacy,” Steve McConnell, head of the Civic Participation Action Fund, wrote in the Chronicle of Philanthropy in 2015.

In other states, it has donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to support ballot measures that would raise the minimum wage or ensure felons can get back their right to vote after serving time, according to data compiled by the National Institute for Money in State Politics.

In New Mexico, the fund’s money has gone to some of the most heated races of the year.

Better Future for New Mexico spent about $71,000 from late March through June, with the single biggest expense a $30,000 donation to Enchantment PAC for what it labeled as canvassing.

Enchantment PAC supported a slate of progressive candidates, including Andrea Romero, who defeated state Rep. Carl Trujillo in an intense Democratic primary for a state House district that stretches across the north end of Santa Fe County.

The group also backed Paula Garcia, who unsuccessfully ran for the Democratic nomination in Rep. Nick Salazar’s House seat. And it supported Susan Herrera, who unseated longtime Rep. Debbie Rodella in a sprawling Northern New Mexico district.

Better Future for New Mexico also spent $29,500 for research from the Majority Institute, a Denver-based political consulting group. And it gave $10,000 to the liberal group ProgressNow New Mexico for research.

The political action committee got money elsewhere, too.

The group got $190,000 from the State Victory Action.

According to IRS filings, the State Victory is a new group funded by liberal financiers George Soros and Donald Sussman as well as NextGen Climate Action, which is funded by prominent Democratic donor Tom Steyer.

Better Future for New Mexico trailed only one other political action committee in fundraising during this election cycle through June. Conservation Voters New Mexico’s Verde Voters Fund raised more money — some $630,000 — and spent big during the primary, particularly in races for Public Regulation Commission seats and state land commissioner.

By the end of June, Better Future for New Mexico had more money on hand.

This distinction, of course, could be fleeting. Political action committees can manifest as quickly as it takes a lawyer to rent a post office box and file paperwork with the Secretary of State’s Office. And PACs can vanish just about as quickly with a few big checks to other PACs and organizations.

The biggest spenders, after all, are what are known as independent expenditure committees — free to raise and spend unlimited sums as long as they do not coordinate with candidates.

Observers expect these organizations will play an even bigger role in what is shaping up to be an expensive election season, with spending in the race for governor already climbing over $7 million when primary candidates are counted.

Meanwhile, Democrats will be angling to widen their majority in the state House of Representatives, particularly in Albuquerque districts that are currently held by Republicans but heavily favored Democrat Hillary Clinton in 2016. And oil as well as utility industry groups are likely to plow big sums of money into defeating Democrats running for state land commissioner and the Public Regulation Commission.

“Each year since the Citizens United ruling, we have seen independent expenditures and PAC spending dramatically rise each election, and 2018 is looking to be a total blowout,” said Viki Harrison, executive director of Common Cause New Mexico, which advocates for campaign finance reform. “With a governor’s race and the House up for re-election, there are lots of races and plenty of opportunities for everyone to spend on their favorite candidate.”

Still, Better Future’s six-figure war chest heading into the general election shows it could be a powerful force behind left-leaning candidates.