Unions Pour Millions Into PA Elections

Government Unions Pour Millions into Pa. Elections
Taxpayers Help Union Leaders Target U. S. Senate, State Attorney General Races

November 2, 2016, HARRISBURG, Pa.—Government union leaders have poured nearly $8 million into Pennsylvania races, according to the latest campaign finance reports. U. S. Senate candidate Katie McGinty, Gov. Wolf’s former chief of staff, is the biggest beneficiary of government union money—totaling $4.4 million. State attorney general candidate Josh Shapiro is the second largest recipient at $216,523.

"This political money is collected and sent to government unions using publicly-funded payroll systems," commented Elizabeth Stelle, director of policy analysis for the Commonwealth Foundation. "While government union leaders are free to engage in politics, they should not be allowed to make taxpayers an unwilling third party to their political agenda."

The Commonwealth Foundation has compiled the 10 Pennsylvania candidates who have received the most support from government union PACs:

Top 10 Recipients of Government Union PACs

Candidate Total
Katie McGinty $4,443,586*
Josh Shapiro $216,523
Rob Teplitz $187,500
Mike Hanna $164,350
Frank Dermody $163,500
Joe Markosek $119,000
Vincent Hughes $118,500
Eugene DePasquale $113,300
Linda Weaver $108,500
Leanne Krueger-Braneky $102,915

* Includes expenditures in support of McGinty or in opposition to Toomey
Source: Pennsylvania Department of State, "Campaign Finance Online Reporting,"; Federal Election Commission, "Campaign Finance Disclosure Portal."

The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) leads all government unions in PAC spending at just under $3 million, followed by the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) at $1.6 million and the Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA) at $1.3 million.
In total, government unions have spent nearly $8 million on Pennsylvania 2016 elections so far.

Top 10 Gov. Unions by PAC Spending on Pa. Races

Union Total
AFSCME $2,983,862
SEIU $1,630,474
PSEA $1,369,553
SEIU-Pa. $458,715
AFSCME, Council 13 $434,500
UFCW, Local 1776 $177,175
SEIU Healthcare-Pa. $136,550
Phila. Federation of Teachers $127,500
APSCUF $122,550
Pa. State Corrections Officers $98,200
Grand Total (All gov. unions) $7,948,384

Source: Pennsylvania Department of State, "Campaign Finance Online Reporting,"; Federal Election Commission, "Campaign Finance Disclosure Portal."

"Only government unions can legally use public resources to collect money specifically earmarked for politics," continued Stelle. "Pennsylvanians know public resources and politics shouldn’t mix: Nearly 70 percent of state voters support requiring government unions to collect their own political money. It’s time for the state Legislature to prioritize paycheck protection legislation and stop government from collecting political contributions."
Elizabeth Stelle and other Commonwealth Foundation experts are available for comment. Please contact Gina Diorio at 862-703-6670 or [email protected] to schedule an interview.

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