Political leanings: Conservative
2020 total spending: $71.2 million
Club for Growth Action, the super PAC of the conservative Club for Growth, was launched in August 2010. On its website, the organization declares its mission is to “take on any Member of Congress on policy who fails to uphold basic economic conservative principles … regardless of party.”
The super PAC targets some Republican incumbents in primary elections in order to replace them with “pro-growth, limited government conservatives.” Club for Growth Action states on its website that it has been “instrumental” in helping to elect conservatives such as Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas, Marco Rubio of Florida and Tim Scott of South Carolina.
As of July 31, the group had raised about $55 million in contributions for the 2022 election cycle.
Its independent expenditures — spending for or against named candidates, without coordination with candidates or parties — totaled about $41 million, as of Aug. 30. Club for Growth Action has spent most of that on Senate races, including nearly $7 million in support of Rep. Ted Budd of North Carolina, a Republican seeking the Senate seat currently held by Republican Sen. Richard Burr, who is not seeking reelection. Budd also has the endorsement of former President Donald Trump. The super PAC also spent nearly $3.8 million against Budd’s top primary opponent, former Gov. Pat McCrory, who lost to Budd in May.
The super PAC went against Trump’s pick in Ohio. It spent more than $5 million against Trump-backed Senate candidate J.D. Vance in Ohio. Vance won the primary, defeating Club for Growth Action-endorsed Josh Mandel, a former Ohio Treasurer.
Club for Growth Action also spent more than $1.7 million in support of Rep. Mo Brooks of Alabama, who lost to Katie Britt in the GOP primary for the Senate seat currently held by retiring Republican Sen. Richard Shelby. The super PAC spent nearly $2.7 million against Britt, who will face Democratic nominee Will Boyd in November.
As for its contributions, more than two-thirds of the Club for Growth Action’s money thus far in the 2022 cycle has come from three donors: Richard Uihlein, Virginia James and Jeff Yass. Uihlein, the chief executive officer of Uline, a shipping, packaging and industrial supplies company, has donated nearly $27 million to the super PAC. James, an investor and chair of the Club for Growth’s board of directors, has contributed about $6 million. Yass, co-founder of the financial firm Susquehanna International Group, has donated $5.5 million to the committee.
In the 2020 cycle, Club for Growth Action spent $71.2 million, including $65.5 million on independent expenditures. The super PAC spent almost $43.2 million of that on House races and nearly $10.2 million on Senate races. It also spent $10.6 million against Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden.
The super PAC was involved in the U.S. Senate runoff elections in Georgia, as well, spending $10 million on media, mail and get-out-the-vote initiatives to support then-Sens. Kelly Loeffler and David Perdue, the Republican incumbents who lost their reelection contests.
In addition, the super PAC and its parent committee funded advertisements promoting the confirmation of Amy Coney Barrett, who was then-Trump’s nominee to the U.S. Supreme Court. In September 2020, the Club for Growth announced that it would spend at least $5 million in support of Barrett’s nomination, who was confirmed about a week before the 2020 election.
Uihlein and Yass also contributed a large chunk of the super PAC’s money for the 2020 elections. Uihlein, who has donated to the Club for Growth Action since 2010, gave $27 million. Yass donated $21.7 million.
FactCheck.org Undergraduate Fellow Lucía Osses contributed to this article.
Fact-checking Club for Growth Action:
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