Promote the Vote 2022, the constitutional amendment proposal that would allow voters without an ID to vote with an affidavit and creates an early voting system in Michigan, has spent more than $1 million to pay petition circulators to collect the signatures they needed to move their proposal to the November ballot.
Overall, Promote the Vote raised $800,000 from the enigmatic “Sixteen Thirty Fund” in Washington D.C. and a combined $2.5 million from the $2.7 million raised this quarter from deep-pocketed donors who don’t live in Michigan. It has more than $1.3 million in hand.
The Protect the Right to Vote, on the other hand, pulled in $5,363 over the quarter and collected just over $10,000 for the cycle. It has put nearly $1,500 into its campaign and has $8,283 leftover.
The Republicans’ answer to voting reform – Secure MI Vote – which requires photo ID to vote and ends local clerks and the Secretary of State from being able to send out unsolicited absentee ballot applications collected $333,000 over the last quarter. Nearly $1.4 million has been raised by this committee from the Michigan Guard of Democracy and Michigan Republican Party.
Nearly all of it has been spent.
Empower MI Vote, a ballot question committee opposing Secure MI Vote, raised nearly $60,000 overall, pulling in $6,895 for the quarter. Organizers have put much of what they raised for the quarter right back out the door.
Another hot-button issue ballot initiative with petitions circulating is the Reproductive Freedom for All Michigan, which would enshrine abortion rights into the state constitution.
The ballot initiative has $1.87 million, with a second ballot question committee, named Public Health Over Politicians, having raised $30,000. Both committees have spent nearly everything with Freedom for All having $194,016 in the bank and Public Health having $11,792.
Citizens to Support MI Women and Children, the opposition to the abortion ballot petition, raised just over $108,000 in the quarter and has $4,233 left after spending.
The Betsy DeVos-backed Let MI Kids Learn ballot question for the Student Opportunity Scholarship and tax credit raised nearly $1.7 million in the quarter, with a $3.4 million overall run. The campaign dumped $1.9 into the two citizen-backed initiatives and is left with more than $1 million.
The opposing ballot committee, For MI Kids For Our Schools, raised nearly $100,000 and has $8,547 left.
Robert Gelt, a supporter of former President Donald Trump who is asking for an audit of the 2020 election, has raised more than $12,000 to get the question on the ballot in November 2022.
An initiative to raise the minimum wage to $15 in Michigan raised $458,000 during the quarter and $1.8 million since the start of the campaign. The committee has spent $1.8 million this quarter, leaving it with nearly $6,000 in hand.
Unlock Michigan, backing Unlock Michigan II, raised $61,312 for the quarter, with a total fundraising of just over $1.2 million. Most has been spent and the ballot question has just over $4,500 left.
Keep Michigan Safe, the opposition to Unlock Michigan, raised nearly $1,500, with an overall run of just over $200,000. It still has $17,850 on hand.
The Liberty and Justice For All campaign is running a debt of more than $11,000 after not raising anything except $65 since the start.
The Payday Loan Interest Rate ballot initiative pulled in the most with an overall fund of $4.2 million. It collected $1.5 of that in the current quarter and has just over $2 million left after spending.
MIRS previously reported that Voters for Transparency and Term Limits has $5 million in pledges to get on the ballot.