HARRISBURG — Elizabeth Moro is trying to flip a Republican holdout in the mostly blue Philadelphia suburbs — and she’s got plenty of support.
Tens of thousands of dollars from local and national interest groups have flowed into her state House campaign. She’s also been joined at campaign events by at least one Hollywood celebrity (The OC’s Adam Brody), a well-known gun control advocate (Fred Guttenberg, whose daughter was murdered in a mass shooting), and established figures in the Democratic party including Gov. Josh Shapiro.
The 160th, which includes parts of Chester and Delaware Counties, has been represented by Republican state Rep. Craig Williams since 2021. Its outlier status makes it a top target as Democrats seek to maintain or grow their one-seat majority in the Pennsylvania House.
“When I ran for Congress, it was so hard and money was so tight,” Moro said. “This race … [people] like the governor came to my district. They all recognize the importance of this district.”
Moro’s race isn’t just drawing big names. It’s also one of 21 competitive legislative races bringing in a historic wave of cash.
Spotlight PA analyzed campaign spending in these flippable districts between May 14 and Oct. 21 — the first financial report candidates filed after the primary election, and their last full pre-election report.
The analysis found the average spending on a competitive state House or Senate race was $1.1 million and $3.5 million, respectively. Spending in three races has topped $4 million.
These totals only represent money spent by each campaign and in-kind donations of goods or services like catering and mailers to benefit the candidate. The actual price tag is likely higher when including independent spending by outside groups.
Much is at stake on Nov. 5. In addition to defending their state House majority, Democrats are also taking another run at flipping the state Senate, where Republicans have a 28-22 advantage.
Control of a single chamber provides a party leverage in policy negotiations with the governor. Total control of the legislature by one party gives it power to set the agenda on key issues like abortion, election law, and taxes.
Following the most recent redistricting cycle, both the state House and Senate ended up with fewer competitive seats — meaning neither major party has an overwhelming majority in a district. That means more attention on the smaller number of competitive races left.
The Spotlight PA analysis shows that Democrats have a spending advantage in competitive state House races, while Republicans have the same in the state Senate.
Ten years ago, recalled Sam Chen, a Lehigh Valley-based Republican political operative, conventional wisdom was that a state House race might cost tens of thousands of dollars, and “if you can raise six figures, you're winning.”
Looking at the current price tag, Chen said: “That’s insane. That’s not inflationary numbers.”
Pennsylvania has always, to an extent, had free-spending politics. The state places no limits on campaign giving, allowing interest groups and the wealthy to pour as much money as they want into state-level races such as for governor or Pennsylvania Supreme Court.
But in recent years, this spending has trickled down to individual state legislative races, fueled by out-of-state groups that funnel national money into local elections.
Take Moro. She’s received over $800,000 since May, with major donations from both state and national organizations. The local checks include traditional Democratic allies like the state Democratic party, legislative leaders including state Rep. Matt Bradford (D., Montgomery), and labor unions such as the Pennsylvania chapter of the American Federation of Teachers.
One major donor is the Washington, D.C.-based PAC for America’s Future, which has contributed over $150,000 to her campaign since May. The PAC’s barebones website says it is focused on donating to “majority-making candidates.”
It raised $14 million this year, according to state campaign finance filings, of which less than 1% came from Pennsylvania donors. Instead, the PAC raised its millions from the wealthy and famous, including Jonathan Soros — a prominent Democratic donor who alone donated $2 million — as well as checks from director Steven Spielberg, comedian Jimmy Fallon, actress Sarah Jessica Parker, and heirs to fortunes created by Walmart and Berkshire Hathaway.
In turn, the PAC has funneled its money to Democrats in swing states, including almost $6 million to Pennsylvania candidates and Democratic campaign committees that fight to defend incumbents and flip seats.
In a statement, PAC for America’s Future said that state legislatures are “the strongest force for change in this country, and we power campaigns to create majorities that are committed to defending democracy, protecting personal freedoms and improving their constituents’ lives.”
“With so much at stake in this election, we are proud to do our part to bring together Americans who understand the importance of these races and provide the resources and support these candidates need to win,” the statement concluded.
This isn’t the first time the PAC has been active in Pennsylvania. It first registered with the state in 2020, and donated at least $7.7 million in 2022 to Democrats in their successful effort to flip the state House.
For her part, Moro thinks that the attention on the state legislature increased after former President Donald Trump’s time in office. She cited the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade and attempts to decertify the 2020 election’s results as examples.
“I think more people are paying attention to state and local legislators because of what we saw happen with the 2020 election, where the states could have gotten in the way of certifying the election,” Moro told Spotlight PA.
Republicans have their own big-money allies. Commonwealth Leaders Fund — a political action committee almost entirely funded by Pennsylvania’s wealthiest man, Jeff Yass — has spent at least $4.6 million on ads and mailers in the competitive districts analyzed by Spotlight PA. Other Yass-linked PACs have made donations directly to candidates or campaign committees.
But spending by the Commonwealth Leaders Fund hasn’t been enough to counter national support for the new Democratic state House majority. The party’s campaign committee and candidates have outspent Republicans in at least 13 swing districts, according to Spotlight PA’s analysis.
At least $3.4 million has been spent to defend state Rep. Frank Burns (D., Cambria) in a district where voters favored Trump by 30 percentage points in 2020 — the most expensive state House race analyzed by Spotlight PA.
His GOP opponent, Amy Bradley, and her allies have spent nearly $885,000, by comparison. Her campaign is almost entirely funded by the Commonwealth Leaders Fund, while the House Democratic Campaign Committee has provided nearly all of Burns’ dollars.
The House Democratic committee’s most recent campaign finance filing was not publicly available as of Nov. 1, so it’s unclear where its money is coming from. It has historically taken money from unions, trial lawyers, and a multitude of national groups that try to elect Democrats.
A spokesperson for the committee said it raised $15.2 million from within Pennsylvania, but would not disclose how much money it has raised since May in total.
HDCC Executive Director Madeline Zann said in a statement that the committee is “deeply grateful for support that enables us to protect the interests of Pennsylvanians — especially when billionaires like Jeff Yass are flooding these races with money to try and buy a Republican majority.”
The spending gap between Democratic and GOP candidates didn’t surprise state Rep. Josh Kail (R., Beaver), chair of state House Republicans’ campaign arm. Despite Democrats outspending them, he expressed confidence that GOP candidates and their messaging would help them prevail this year.
“We've recognized this from the start — it's going to be House Republicans versus the world,” Kail told Spotlight PA. “And quite frankly, my money is on House Republicans.”
But to build and protect a majority in future elections, Kail said Republicans need to find their own steady stream of national cash.
“There's got to be a wake-up call nationally with the Republican Party,” he added. “If we don't start taking these state House seats seriously, it's going to have implications across the board.”
While Democrats have a spending edge as they try to protect their state House majority, Republican candidates for state Senate have outspent all but one challenger in five competitive races.
In particular, Republican leadership and the caucus’ campaign arm have poured money into two competitive races outside of Pittsburgh, one with a vulnerable GOP incumbent and another open seat previously held by Democrats. Combined, spending on these two races has reached nearly $11 million.
Money for Republican state Senate candidates has mostly been sourced from traditional Republican allies in the state. Alongside checks from Yass-funded groups and the national Republican group that supports state legislative races are insurers, construction contractors, utility companies, and fossil fuel interests — plus $800,000 from Philadelphia landlord and charter school operator Michael Karp.
Sarah Bryner, director of research at the Washington, D.C.-based campaign finance tracker OpenSecrets, told Spotlight PA that there’s been a realization that previously low-profile state legislative and other statewide races can have national implications. As such, national political actors have started to pay attention.
But whether it's one billionaire, a cadre of millionaires or a mass of small donors funding the races, the final say will always come down to the Pennsylvanians living within the boundaries of a key district.
“Generally speaking, having more people supporting your cause is good,” Bryner said, “but if those more people don't live and can't vote for the issue that they're getting involved in, it doesn't matter.”
The analysis excluded three competitive districts (HD-44, HD-88, and HD-137) because campaign finance information for at least one of the candidates was not publicly available as of Nov. 1.
