Photo by Derek Bridges/WikimediaIn October and November, U.S. Sen. David Vitter was the single largest donor to the independent super PAC that is supporting his run for governor in 2015.
It’s an unmistakable signal that next year’s race for governor could very well shatter previous money records. It’s also a sign that the new financial landscape in Louisiana politics will be at times confusing.
Super PACs are political action committees that can raise unlimited amounts of money, as opposed to regular PACs that face strict contribution limits. They are allowed to spend money on behalf of candidates, but the candidates that benefit from the spending are not allowed to coordinate on any level with the super PACs.
The Fund for Louisiana’s Future, the super PAC in question, reported having $2.7 million in the bank as of the first week of December, based on its latest filing with the Federal Election Commission. It is supporting Vitter and others; earlier this year the super PAC also sponsored a web-based ad buy on behalf of Insurance Commissioner Jim Donelon, praising his work on federal flood insurance policy.
The super PAC raised $985,000 in a 40-day period from Oct. 16 to Nov. 24, with most of it coming directly from Vitter’s own federal Senate campaign account. A single donation of $740,000 on Nov. 12 took the honor, which is in addition to the $100,000 Vitter contributed to the super PAC in February.
Recent court decisions have seemingly paved the way for Vitter’s donations to a super PAC that he cannot legally coordinate with, but it’s unknown how much further he will push the practice. As of Oct. 17, Vitter had $792,000 remaining in his federal campaign account, which is a tally that does not factor in his $740,000 gift to the super PAC.
So the question now becomes whether Vitter will continue to raise money through his Senate account, only to move it to the unaffiliated super PAC. He cannot use his federal Senate campaign account to run for state office. He can only use it to seek re-election to the U.S. Senate.
Vitter has not filed an updated campaign finance report on the state level since 2004, a holdover from when he served in the state Legislature, but the next deadline is approaching in early 2015.
Either way, Vitter’s emptying of his federal account should help extinguish rumors that top-level donors are trying to persuade him to stay in the Senate to leverage his seniority.