Tech-backed PACs pour over $100 million into California’s most contested legislative races
More than $100 million in independent expenditures from tech-aligned groups and unions is flooding nine tightly contested California state legislative contests as Election Day approaches.
In the final weeks before California’s state legislative elections, independent expenditures have topped $100 million, eclipsing the 2024 cycle. Tech-aligned groups dominate the spending: Grow California, financed by cryptocurrency investor Chris Larsen and venture capitalist Tim Draper, has disbursed $17.5 million, while California Leads, backed by Meta and Google, has spent close to $14 million on candidates promising pragmatic solutions.
Republican-oriented Legislative Action PAC, created in 2025 with funding from Google, AT&T and oil and gas interests, has allocated at least $6 million to GOP hopefuls. The nine most expensive races include Assembly District 68 (David Penaloza vs. Jessie Lopez), Senate District 24 (John Erickson vs. Brian Goldsmith), Assembly District 47 (Greg Wallis vs. Leila Namvar), and Senate District 26 (Sara Hernandez vs. Sarah Rascón), each seeing multi-million-dollar ad buys from both tech and labor groups.
Union coalitions have also contributed heavily, especially in races like Assembly District 68 where they spent $1.4 million supporting Lopez. The influx of money is intensifying competition in both swing and safely Democratic districts across the state.
Why it matters
The surge of tech and union money could reshape California’s legislative balance and set precedents for future campaign finance battles.
How this story developed
- Oct 2 US Governors Split on AI Safety Rules and Data Center Expansion Ahead of Midterms
- Oct 8 A Ratepayer Protection Act was introduced to require developers to cover power and water costs.
- Oct 14 Governors have publicly outlined differing AI safety and data‑center strategies ahead of the November 3 midterms.
- Oct 16 Senate Democrats blocked the Ratepayer Protection Act.
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