Candidates and outside groups have already spent $166 million in Wisconsin’s gubernatorial contest, making it the most expensive in state history, according to a WisPolitics review.
And Republicans have had a massive advantage, accounting for $117.5 million of what’s been spent so far, compared to $48.7 million on the Dem side.
GOP nominee Tom Tiffany has been by far the biggest spender in the race, detailing $47 million in expenditures on his campaign finance reports. That has nearly matched the entire Dem effort in the race, including spending by outside groups, rival David Crowley and the candidates that ran against the Milwaukee County executive for the Dem nomination.
Tiffany has also had help from groups such as Restoration of America PAC, which is largely funded by Illinois businessman Dick Uihlein and has reported almost $20 million in independent expenditures for the race.
Phil Shulman, a spokesperson for Dem nominee David Crowley’s campaign, slammed the major donors who have helped fuel Tiffany’s spending through donations to the state GOP, which in turn has transferred millions to the Republican nominee.
“Congressman Tom Tiffany’s allies are spending more than $100 million on this race because they know exactly what they’re getting: a governor who will cut taxes for the rich while Wisconsin families pay the price,” Shulman said.
Tiffany’s campaign countered by focusing on the $8 million that LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman has donated to the state Dem Party in recent weeks as it has transferred millions to Crowley’s campaign. Republicans have knocked the state Dem Party for accepting contributions from Hoffman over his connection to Jeffrey Epstein.
“He is bought and paid for by the Epstein class,” the Tiffany campaign said of Crowley.
Large donors on both sides have helped fuel spending in the governor’s race, thanks to a state law that places no caps on the contributions that political parties can receive and then allows them to make unlimited transfers to committees.
The state GOP has transferred $43.8 million to Tiffany’s campaign this year, while doing another $5.5 million in in-kind contributions for him for things like mail and canvassing. All that has come as Uihlein, his wife Liz and Diane Hendricks have pumped $52.2 million into the party since Jan. 1, according to campaign finance reports.
Meanwhile, Crowley has seen a late surge in his spending thanks to transfers from the state Dem Party. He’s now received $14.4 million in transfers from WisDems this year with another $911,440 in in-kind contributions.
Beyond the Hoffman donations, the state Dem Party has reported several seven-figure donors since the primary. That includes: nearly $3.4 million from Oklahoma philanthropist Lynn Schusterman, $2.1 million from Milwaukee philanthropist Lynde Uihlein, $2 million from former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, $1 million from Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and $1 million from California philanthropist Nina Singh Wanstrath.
To calculate the spending to date, WisPolitics reviewed campaign finance reports filed by every Dem and GOP candidate that was part of this year’s race. It also tallied independent expenditure reports filed with the state through this morning and data from AdImpact, which tracks paid media.
That total came to just over $166 million. That tops the $164 million that the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign tallied in the 2022 race once the final reports were in after Dem Gov. Tony Evers secured a second term.
And more spending is coming. Crowley, for example, detailed $19.8 million spent on TV, online ads and radio in his finance reports, which cover through Oct. 19. AdImpact, though, tracked a more than $2.9 million buy on broadcast TV, cable, radio and satellite added Monday that runs through the Nov. 3 election.
Crowley had $4.1 million in the bank as of Oct. 19 and has reported $2.8 million in late contributions since the close of the pre-election period.
Meanwhile, Tiffany had $4.8 million for cash on hand and has since reported another $579,947 in late contributions.
Tiffany has focused his spending on paid media with his reports detailing $40 million spent on TV and digital ads, making him the dominant spender on the airwaves for the race.
Restoration of America PAC, meanwhile, has spent its $19.9 million on a mix of TV ads, mail and turnout efforts.
Other top spenders in the race on the GOP side include Right Direction Wisconsin, an affiliate of the Republican Governors Association, which has reported nearly $17.9 million in independent expenditures, mostly through paid media.
The conservative Americans for Prosperity has reported more than $10.1 million in independent expenditures since June through a mix of turnout efforts and digital ads, while a new group First Amendment LLC has reported $9.3 million in paid media helping Tiffany. That group is funded solely by Scott Banister, an early investor in PayPal, Uber and SpaceX, among other companies. He’s committed to spending $40 million this cycle to help Republicans across the country.
On the Dem side, only the Democratic Governors Association has topped $2 million in spending with more than $20 million in paid media backing Crowley and opposing Tiffany.