Democrat Dark Money Group, GOP Billionaires Spending Heavily on Ohio GOP Primary

Cleveland entrepreneur Bernie Moreno (R) kicks off his 2024 Ohio U.S. Senate campaign with an event in suburban Cincinnati on April 18, 2023. Everitt Townsend

Money from both candidates and outside groups rushed into Ohio ahead of a crucial Republican Party primary on March 19.

Three candidates—Ohio General Assembly member Matt Dolan, Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose, and entrepreneur Bernie Moreno—are running in a hotly contested GOP primary in an effort to unseat Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio).

According to campaign filings from the candidates, Mr. Moreno and Mr. Dolan have the most cash on hand ahead of the March 19 vote. Mr. LaRose trails by a significant distance.

In terms of overall fundraising, according to the pre-primary filings the candidates and their affiliated political action committees filed with the Federal Election Commission on March 7, Mr. Dolan has raised the most money out of the Republican field.

Polling focused on the Buckeye State shows Mr. Dolan and Mr. Moreno are also leading Mr. LaRose in forecasted voter support. Three polls were conducted between March 6 and March 11, and all of them show Mr. Dolan and Mr. Moreno are running exceptionally close to one another.

The average results of the three surveys —conducted by East Carolina University’s Center for Survey Research, SurveyUSA, and Emerson College Polling— show Mr. Dolan and Mr. Moreno polling within less than a percentage point of each other. Mr. Dolan has about 25.7 percent of voter support, while Mr. Moreno has about 25.3 percent. Mr. LaRose trails with about 18.3 percent.

Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) speaks at Max S. Hayes High School on July 6, 2022, in Cleveland, Ohio, before President Joe Biden takes the stage to discuss his administration's economic agenda. Angelo Merendino/Getty Images

Matt Dolan

Mr. Dolan’s principal campaign committee, Dolan for Ohio, leads the way in overall fundraising, with about $11.4 million raised between the beginning of 2023 and Feb. 28, 2024.

Mr. Dolan is a member of the wealthy Dolan family, which owns Madison Square Garden and other entertainment entities. According to Forbes, the Dolan family, led by media mogul Charles Dolan, is worth an estimated $4.9 billion. Matt Dolan’s father, Larry Dolan, is the principal owner of Major League Baseball’s Cleveland Guardians.

In 2022, Mr. Dolan ran for the Senate seat currently occupied by Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) but lost in the primary.

According to its pre-primary filing, Mr. Dolan’s committee spent about $9 million on the race. It retained about $2.4 million in cash on hand. However, most of the money it raised came in the form of loans.

Dolan for Ohio22, a committee that sponsored Mr. Dolan’s 2022 run for the Senate, loaned $7 million to Dolan for Ohio in 2023. Mr. Dolan personally loaned $2 million to Dolan for Ohio in February.

Mr. Dolan is also receiving support from outside groups. His largest booster, super PAC Buckeye Leadership Fund Inc., raised about $2.2 million between the beginning of 2023 and Feb. 28, 2024, according to FEC filings.

That super PAC got most of its money from Mr. Dolan’s parents, Larry Dolan and Eva Dolan. The couple donated $2 million.

An analysis from political advertising spending tracking service AdImpact published on March 15 said a total of $17.2 million had been spent on political ads to support Mr. Dolan’s run. Buckeye Leadership Fund has spent $5.6 million attacking Mr. Moreno and Mr. LaRose.

(L–R) Ohio State Sen. Matt Dolan, a Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate, speaks with a local television station in Cleveland on April 28, 2022; entrepreneur Bernie Moreno kicks off his campaign in suburban Cincinnati on April 18, 2023; and Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose attends a news conference at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on July 12, 2023. Drew Angerer/Getty Images, Courtesy of Everitt Townsend

Bernie Moreno

Mr. Moreno’s principal campaign committee, Bernie Moreno for Senate, has raised more than $9.7 million and spent about $7.3 million on the race through Feb. 28, 2024, according to FEC filings. It retains about $2.4 million in cash on hand.

Mr. Moreno, who also ran in the 2022 Ohio Senate race before withdrawing and endorsing Mr. Vance, is supported by former President Donald Trump. According to his campaign website, Mr. Moreno was born in Colombia and became a U.S. citizen at age 18. He founded a car dealership group in 2005 and also started and sold a car title processing technology company, ChampTitles.

President Trump is scheduled to campaign with a Moreno-supporting super PAC, Buckeye Values PAC, on March 16 in Dayton, Ohio.

Like Mr. Dolan, Mr. Moreno’s campaign features considerable support in terms of loans issued by another committee related to the candidate. Bernie Moreno for Ohio, a committee tied to Mr. Moreno’s 2022 run, loaned $4.2 million to Bernie Moreno for Senate between September 2023 and February.

Bernie Moreno for Senate is also drawing support from Team Moreno, a joint fundraising committee formed on Jan. 24, 2024. Team Moreno sent about $91,000 to Bernie Moreno for Senate in February. Team Moreno has yet to file any documents with the FEC except for its Statement of Organization.

Mr. Moreno’s run is supported by a number of outside spenders, too. According to AdImpact, the super PACs Club for Growth Action, Buckeye Values PAC, and Duty and Country are spending money on advertisements to support Mr. Moreno or attack his Republican opponents.

Cumulatively, according to AdImpact, Mr. Moreno has seen $15.7 million in ad spending to his benefit. Club for Growth Action spent $5.5 million. Buckeye Values PAC spent $1.3 million. Duty and Country spent $2.7 million.

Club for Growth Action is tied to the conservative political group Club for Growth. That group has officially endorsed Mr. Moreno, calling him “the best economic conservative in this competitive GOP primary,” on its website.

Club for Growth Action’s most prominent sponsors are conservative mega-donors Jeff Yass and Richard Uihlein. Mr. Yass sent the group more than $16 million between January 2023 and the end of January 2024. Mr. Uihlein donated close to $10 million during the same period.

Club for Growth Action reported it held more than $19.6 million in cash on hand at the end of January 2024.

Buckeye Values PAC is also boosted by Mr. Yass by way of the super PAC Protect Freedom PAC. Protect Freedom sent Buckeye Values $500,000 in February. Buckeye Values raised about $1.4 million between March 2023 and Feb. 28, 2024. Protect Freedom got most of its money, $6 million of the about $6.1 million it raised, from Mr. Yass in 2023.

Curiously, Mr. Moreno’s third-largest outside spender is supported entirely by the 501(c)(4) group Majority Forward, according to the FEC. Majority Forward, according to its website, boosts Senate Majority PAC. The PAC, registered as super PAC SMP with the FEC, exists to help Democrats maintain a majority in the Senate, according to its website.

Republican Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose speaks at the Statehouse in Columbus, Ohio, on Oct. 6, 2022. Julie Carr Smyth/AP Photo

Frank LaRose

Mr. LaRose is bringing up the rear in terms of fundraising, but he’s also getting some outside support.

Mr. LaRose, an Army veteran and Bronze Star winner who’s served as Ohio’s secretary of state since 2019 is making his first run for national office in 2024.

According to FEC filings, Mr. LaRose’s principal campaign committee, LaRose for Senate, raised about $2.2 million between July 2023 and Feb. 28, 2024. The group spent about $1.6 million and had about $590,000 in cash on hand at the end of February. Mr. LaRose loaned the committee $250,000 in September 2023.

Mr. LaRose has not spent on political ads, according to AdImpact. However, he’s had others buy advertisements supporting him. The super PAC Leadership for Ohio Fund spent $5.4 million backing Mr. LaRose and trashing Mr. Moreno.

According to its FEC filings, Mr. Uihlein is the key fundraiser for Leadership for Ohio Fund. He donated $3 million in December 2023. A group funded almost entirely by Mr. Uihlein, Restoration PAC, sent $1 million to Leadership for Ohio Fund, too.