Senate race super PACs just so-so

Groups for Sanchez have raised $207,000 while one for Harris collected $1.2 million.

SACRAMENTO — The super PACs dabbling in California’s U.S. Senate race between Orange County Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-Orange) and state Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris aren’t exactly breaking fundraising records.

A right-leaning PAC backing Sanchez has raised just $26,000 in the current two-year election cycle, according to its filings with the Federal Election Commission.

The Jobs, Opportunity and Freedom PAC made a splash in June when its GOP consultant, Dave Gilliard, announced the organization was supporting Sanchez because there was no Republican candidate on the November ballot. Sanchez and Harris are Democrats, but the PAC considered the congresswoman to be the more moderate of the two.

The Harris campaign used the PAC as sort of a political bogeyman when it sent out fundraising pleas to potential campaign contributors.

The other PAC supporting Sanchez, Orange County-based California’s New Frontier, has had a little more heft. This week it’s launching a radio ad that attacks Harris as a “Bay Area liberal” and tries to persuade Republicans to vote for Sanchez.

The PAC has raised $181,000. The PAC’s donors include former Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan, a Republican who has endorsed Sanchez and gave $20,000, and Irvine developer Michael D. Ray, who gave the same amount.

The largest super PAC in the Senate race backs Harris. Standing Up for California’s Middle Class has raised about $1.2 million as of Sept. 30, according to its filings with the Federal Election Commission.

In September, the PAC received $100,000 from billionaire supermarket magnate Ron Burkle, a longtime patron of Democratic elected officials. Stephen Cloobeck of Las Vegas, the chief executive of a vacation time-share and resorts company, also gave $100,000.

The PAC, however, is backed primarily by organized labor, including the following contributions:

$150,000 from the California State Council of Service Employees Political Committee;

$100,000 from the Service Employees International Union’s United Healthcare Workers;

$100,000 from the California Professional Firefighters PAC;

$100,000 from the Employees International Union Local 1000 Candidate PAC;

$100,000 from the International Assn. of Firefighters;

$25,000 from an International Brotherhood of Teamsters PAC;

$25,000 from the Professional Engineers in California Government.

According to its most recent disclosure, the PAC had hired one of the Harris campaign’s former fundraisers, Erin Mincberg. Other than that and on some polling, the PAC has not spent much, reports show.

Along with the super PACs, the California Democratic Party also has jumped into the Senate race. But the party’s involvement is onesided. The party has provided more than $560,000 to the Harris campaign but not a dime to Sanchez.