Hijacking Campaign 2023 | Independent Expenditures | Issue Ads | Candidates | Campaign 2023

Posted: March 25, 2023
Updated: March 25, 2024

Spring: Oath • Spending

An organization devoted to liberal causes, MoveOn was started in opposition to the impeachment of Democratic President Bill Clinton in 1998. MoveOn's political action committee is based in Washington, D.C. and registered with the Federal Elections Commission, although it operated as unregistered committee in the 2023 Wisconsin State Supreme Court election. This is the third such committee MoveOn has used to make independent expenditures in Wisconsin state politics. It last operated as an unregistered committee in the 2018 gubernatorial election and was first active in the 2011 recall elections, when it was obligated to register with the state under then existing state election law.

At the time of the April 4 Wisconsin State Supreme Court election, conservatives held a 4-3 majority on the court. As the winner of the election would be filling the 10-year seat vacated by retiring conservative Justice Patience Roggensack, the winner of the election would determine the future ideological direction of the court.

Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Janet Protasiewicz, a liberal, defeated former Wisconsin State Supreme Court Judge Daniel Kelly, a previous appointee to the high court by former GOP Gov. Scott Walker, in the election.

Less than two weeks before the election, MoveOn reported spending over $3,600 for online advertising and text message opposing Kelly and support Protasiewicz.*

Three days before the election, the group reported spending over another $8,600 for online advertising opposing Kelly and text messages supporting Protasiewicz.

Last active election: 2018

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*MoveOn filed each of its reports with the Wisconsin State Ethics Commission twice under a different identification number each time. The reports are almost, but not quite, identical. The  Wisconsin Democracy Campaign has treated the reports filed under the higher identfication number as the correct, official version and only entered information from those reports in our database.

This organization is an unregistered independent expenditure committee that is required to report any such spending done within 60 days of a primary or an election to the Wisconsin Ethics Commission per Chapter 11, Subchapter X of Wisconsin Statutes.

Hijacking Campaign 2023 | Independent Expenditures | Issue Ads | Candidates | Campaign 2023

Posted: March 27, 2023
Updated: March 25, 2024

Spring: Oath • Spending
Special: Oath • Spending

This is a committee used by the rightwing American Majority Action in Virginia to make independent expenditures in Wisconsin legislative and statewide elections. American Majority was created in 2010 to recruit and support Republican and conservative candidates in state and local races throughout the country.

Supreme Court (Spring)

In late March, the group spent about $12,700 on phone calls, texts, campaign staff costs and literature to support former Justice Daniel Kelly’s election to the high court on April 4. Kelly, a conservative who was appointed to the court in 2016 to fill a vacancy but lost a 2020 election to keep the seat, faced Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Janet Protasiewicz, a liberal. The winner of the race would determine the ideological balance of the court as the winner would replace a member of the court's then 4-3 conservative majority.

Protasiewicz won the election and assumed her seat in August 2023.

After filing its initial spending report, the group reported about another $181,000 in the election.

Special

In addition to the regular April spring elections in 2023, there was a special election to choose a new state senator for suburban Milwaukee’s 8th State Senate District. Democrat Jody Habush Sinykin faced Republican Rep. Dan Knodl, of Germantown, on April 4 to replace long time GOP Sen. Alberta Darling, of River Hills, who retired in December 2022.

Knodl narrowly won the election.

In late March, American Majority first spent about $260 for literature and campaign staff to support Knodl race. Subsequently the group spent about an additional $1,040 to support Knod's campaign.

Last active election: 2022

This organization is an unregistered independent expenditure committee that is required to report any such spending done within 60 days of a primary or an election to the Wisconsin Ethics Commission per Chapter 11, Subchapter X of Wisconsin Statutes.

Hijacking Campaign 2023 | Independent Expenditures | Issue Ads | Candidates | Campaign 2023

Posted: March 28, 2023
Updated: March 26, 2024

Spring: Oath • Spending

This is a Washington, D.C.-based super PAC that makes independent expenditures to support Democratic candidates for federal office.

The PAC is affiliated with Somos Votantes, a self-described Latino get-out-the-vote group.

Somos PAC made its first expenditures in Wisconsin state elections as an unregistered committee about a week before the April 4, 2023 spring elections. The group sponsored $45,000 in radio ads against former Supreme Court Justice Daniel Kelly. Six days before the election, it reported spending over another $6,800 for radio ads opposing Kelly.

Kelly, a conservative who was appointed to the high court in 2016 to fill a vacancy but lost a 2020 election to keep the seat, faced liberal Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Janet Protasiewicz.

Protasiewicz won the election and shifted the officially nonpartisan high court from a 4-3 conservative majority to a 4-3 liberal one when she joined the court the following August.

This organization is an unregistered independent expenditure committee that is required to report any such spending done within 60 days of a primary or an election to the Wisconsin Ethics Commission per Chapter 11, Subchapter X of Wisconsin Statutes.

Hijacking Campaign 2023 | Independent Expenditures | Issue Ads | Candidates | Campaign 2023

Posted: March 31, 2023
Updated: March 26, 2024

Spring: Oath • Spending

This federal political action committee (PAC) is used by the National Rifle Association (NRA), the nation’s largest and most controversial pro-gun group, to make independent expenditures that generally support Republican and conservative candidates in Wisconsin state elections.

Between 2010 and 2022, the NRA spent more than $5 million on issue ads and independent expenditures placing it among the top special interest groups in spending on legislative and statewide races.

In late March 2023, the group reported spending nearly $38,000 on texting to support conservative Daniel Kelly in the April 4 Wisconsin Supreme Court election. Kelly, a former justice who was appointed to the court in 2016 but voted off the court in 2020, lost the election to Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Janet Protasiewicz, the liberal candidate in the race.

When Protasiewcz assumed her seat on the court the following August, she brought the official nonpartisan court's 4-3 conservative majority to an end.

Last active election: 2022

This organization is an unregistered independent expenditure committee that is required to report any such spending done within 60 days of a primary or an election to the Wisconsin Ethics Commission per Chapter 11, Subchapter X of Wisconsin Statutes.

Hijacking Campaign 2023 | Independent Expenditures | Issue Ads | Candidates | Campaign 2023

Posted: April 2, 2023
Updated: March 25, 2024

Spring: Oath • Spending

Based in Mission, Kansas, this rightward leaning organization touts itself as an advocate for the country's "hunting heritage." Among the organization's key issues are gun ownership and wolf hunting. The group's national spokesperson, rock musician Ted Nugent, was on the board of the National Rifle Assocation for 26 years. Among its board members is the Republican attorney general for Kansas Kris Kobach.

Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Janet Protasiewicz, supported by liberal groups, faced former Wisconsin State Supreme Court Justice Daniel Kelly in the April 4 election for the open ten-year seat. Kelly, originally appointed to the high court by former Republican Gov. Scott Walker, was supported by conservatives.

The Wisconsin State Supreme Court's ideological balance was up for grabs in the election with the retirement of one of the court's 4-3 conservative majority.

Protasiewicz won the election and joined the court in August.

At the end of March, Hunters Nation announced its support for Kelly and subsequently reported spending nearly $52,000 for phone calls and online advertising in the cause. The ad (no longer available) features Nugent claiming "soft on crime Janet will take your guns, limit your hunting, and destroy the traditional American values we hold dear."

After reporting its initital expenditure, the group subsequently reported spending nearly another $50,000 for phone calls and online advertising.

This organization is an unregistered independent expenditure committee that is required to report any such spending done within 60 days of a primary or an election to the Wisconsin Ethics Commission per Chapter 11, Subchapter X of Wisconsin Statutes.

Hijacking Campaign 2023 | Independent Expenditures | Issue Ads | Candidates | Campaign 2023

Posted: April 3, 2023
Updated: April 11, 2023

Spring: Oath • Spending*

This group describes itself as a national campaign against gerrymandering, which is manipulating legislative and congressional district lines for the benefit of one party.

All on the Line’s website is paid for by the National Redistricting Action Fund, which is affiliated with the National Democratic Redistricting Committee (NDRC) .

In additional to pushing for redistricting reform, the NDRC also sponsors electioneering activities to support Democrats for state and federal offices in Wisconsin and around the country. The NDRC was created in 2016 and it is chaired by Eric Holder, the former U.S. Attorney General under Democratic President Barack Obama.

In late March, All on the Line sponsored texts that encouraged readers to vote for Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Janet Protasiewicz in the April 4 election for Wisconsin Supreme Court.

One of the texts proclaimed: “ You have a chance to protect your rights by voting for Janet Protasiewicz on April 4th for Wisconsin Supreme Court. Together, we have the power to flip the balance of the court.”

Protasiewicz, who is viewed as a liberal in the race, faces conservative former Supreme Court Justice Daniel Kelly, who was appointed in 2016 to fill a vacancy on the high court but later failed to win a 2020 election to keep the seat.

Whoever wins will determine the ideological balance of the court, which is currently controlled 4-3 by conservatives, because he or she will replace a retiring conservative justice.

 *The Wisconsin Democracy Campaign has not found any reported spending by All on the Line, but, as it appears to be an instrument of the National Redistricting Action Fund, it is possible that spending reported by that group supported electioneering by All on the Line.

This organization is an unregistered independent expenditure committee that is required to report any such spending done within 60 days of a primary or an election to the Wisconsin Ethics Commission per Chapter 11, Subchapter X of Wisconsin Statutes.

Hijacking Campaign 2023 | Independent Expenditures | Issue Ads | Candidates | Campaign 2023

Posted: April 4, 2023
Updated: March 25, 2023

Spring: Oath • Spending

This is an unregistered independent expenditure committee used by the Wisconsin chapter of the American Federation of Teachers to support Democrats and left-leaning candidates in legislative and statewide races. The American Federation of Teachers represents professional public employees, including teachers.

Days before the April 4 spring elections, the group sponsored $15,000 worth of online ads to support Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Janet Protasiewicz’s bid for the Wisconsin Supreme Court. The day of the election, it reported spending about an additional $550 for text messages.

Protasiewicz, who ran as a liberal, faced former Supreme Court Justice Daniel Kelly, a conservative who was appointed to the court in 2016 to fill a vacancy but failed to keep his seat in a 2020 election. Protasiewicz won the election.

At the time of the election, the court had a 4-3 conservative majority which included retiring Justice Patience Roggensack.

Last active election: 2022

This organization is an unregistered independent expenditure committee that is required to report any such spending done within 60 days of a primary or an election to the Wisconsin Ethics Commission per Chapter 11, Subchapter X of Wisconsin Statutes.

Hijacking Campaign 2023 | Independent Expenditures | Issue Ads | Candidates | Campaign 2023

Posted: April 4, 2023
Updated: March 25, 2024

Spring: Oath • Spending

This unregistered independent expenditure committee is sponsored by Emerging Voters Inc., a Georgia-based group that wants to increase voting in the Asian American Pacific Island community.

Federal Election Commission records show the committee raised about $108,100 and spent nearly $63,000 on independent expenditures around the country in 2022.

Shortly before the April 4 spring election in Wisconsin, the committee spent just over $1,800 on Facebook videos to support Milwaukee County Circuit Judge Janet Protasiewicz’s bid for an open Wisconsin Supreme Court seat. It subsequently spent another $1,850 for advertising campaign to support Protasiewicz.

Protasiewicz, a liberal, faced former Supreme Court Justice Daniel Kelly, a conservative who was appointed to the court in 2016 to fill a vacancy but lost a 2020 election to keep the seat.

The winner would determine the ideological balance of the court, controlled 4-3, at the time of the election, by conservatives, because the retiring justice was a conservative.

Protasiewicz won the election.

This organization is an unregistered independent expenditure committee that is required to report any such spending done within 60 days of a primary or an election to the Wisconsin Ethics Commission per Chapter 11, Subchapter X of Wisconsin Statutes.

Hijacking Campaign 2023 | Independent Expenditures | Issue Ads | Candidates | Campaign 2023

Posted: April 12, 2023
Updated: October 28, 2024

Spring: Oath • Spending
Special: Oath • Spending

Organized in 2019, Blue Sky Waukesha, Inc. is a liberal leaning group based, as its name implies, in Waukesha County. It first made independent expenditures in the 2020 Wisconsin State Supreme Court election.

Supreme Court (Spring)

A week after the April 4 Wisconsin State Supreme Court election, Blue Sky Waukesha reported it had spent just over $27,300 for postcards, radio and digital ads to support Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Janet Protasiewicz for an open ten-year seat on the high court.

Protasiewicz, the liberal in the race, defeated former Wisconsin State Supreme Court Daniel Kelly, who was originally appointed to that post by former GOP Gov. Scott Walker, in the election. When she assumed her seat in August 2023, conservatives lost their 4-3 majority on the court.

Special

A special election was held concurrently with the Wisconsin State Supreme Court election to choose a new state senator for suburban Milwaukee’s 8th State Senate District. Democrat Jody Habush Sinykin faced Republican Rep. Dan Knodl, of Germantown, on April 4 to replace long time GOP Sen. Alberta Darling, of River Hills, who retired in December.

Knodl narrowly won the election.

A week later Blue Sky Waukesha reported it had spent nearly $1,100 for postcards to support Habush Sinykin.

Last active election: 2022

This organization is an unregistered independent expenditure committee that is required to report any such spending done within 60 days of a primary or an election to the Wisconsin Ethics Commission per Chapter 11, Subchapter X of Wisconsin Statutes.

Hijacking Campaign 2023 | Independent Expenditures | Issue Ads | Candidates | Campaign 2023

Posted: April 24, 2023
Updated: March 26, 2024

Spring: Oath • Spending

Based in suburban Milwaukee, the Wisconsin Muslim Civic Alliance was created in October 2019 to represent Muslim political interests and encourage Muslim political participation. It previously made independent expenditures, under a slightly different name, in Wisconsin state-level elections with the 2020 legislative elections and the 2021 state superintendent of public instruction election.

Nearly three weeks after the April 4 election for the Wisconsin State Supreme Court election, the group reported it had spent nearly $12,000 for campaign literature to support Milwaukee County Circuit Court Judge Janet Protasiewicz, a liberal, against former Wisconsin State Supreme Court Justice Daniel Kelly, a conservative, for a ten-year seat on the high court.

The ideological balance of the court was at stake with the election as the winner replaced a retiring member of the court's 4-3 conservative majority.

Protasiewicz won the election and took her seat in August giving liberals a 4-3 majority on the high court.

Last active election: 2021

This organization is an unregistered independent expenditure committee that is required to report any such spending done within 60 days of a primary or an election to the Wisconsin Ethics Commission per Chapter 11, Subchapter X of Wisconsin Statutes.