A hot topic on the campaign trail: how much are Super PACs or outside groups with unlimited cash spending to sway congressional primaries?
So far, more than $27 million cash coming in from the artificial intelligence industry, crypto and a wealthy former mayor.
The top group, as of Friday, was Stand for New York PAC, which is funded solely by former Mayor Michael Bloomberg and is spending heavily to try to get Micah Lasher, an assemblyman and former Bloomberg aide, elected to Congress in the 12th Congressional District.
The other top PACs are also spending in the 12th Congressional District — much of it fueled by the AI industry.
Of all the candidates in these congressional primaries, as of Friday, Lasher had benefited the most, with millions spent to boost his bid.
His main rival, Alex Bores, was the subject of the most attack ads spent by these groups.
Across the city, this district has attracted by far the most outside spending when compared to all the other congressional primaries in the city. Nonetheless, a race in Upper Manhattan, the 13th Congressional District, is starting to generate a fair amount of attention, and with that comes money.
“In NY-13 it is the district that has some of the highest renters and it’s a district that went overwhelmingly voted for Zohran [Mamdani] and clearly they are being represented by a corporate congressman who is no longer meeting their needs,” Usamah Andrabi of the Justice Democrats said.
Multiple groups are now getting involved — some, like the Justice Democrats, trying to boost the insurgent candidate.
Others are trying to save the career of the incumbent Adriano Espaillat.
A new group known as American Priorities is reportedly planning to spend millions on three candidates in this month’s primaries. That group did not respond to multiple requests for comment from NY1.
