A campaign arm of the rebranded, left-wing group ACORN is spending hundreds of thousands to help Democrats win control of the state Senate and protect traditional, union-controlled public schools.
The new political-action committee is called New Yorkers for Good Jobs and Good Schools and is run by Jonathan Westin, executive director of NY Communities for Change — formerly known as ACORN.
Records show that the biggest benefactor of the new group is the United Federation of Teachers, which kicked in $166,000 of the $221,000 it has raised so far.
The Communication Workers of America contributed the remaining $55,000.
In a separate move, the UFT steered $100,000 to the Monroe County Democratic Party to help win an upstate Senate seat.
The heavy spending comes as a furious high-stakes, big money battle rages for control of the Senate, where issues ranging from raising the minimum wage to charter school expansion could be decided next year depending on whether Democrats or Republicans are in the majority.
UFT President Mike Mulgrew defended the union’s financing of the Good Schools PAC.
“We have and will continue to support progressive organizations fighting for our public schools and good paying jobs,” a UFT spokeswoman said.
The UFT was coy about the purpose of the $100,000 shipped to Monroe County.
“We have in the past supported other county organizations outside the five boroughs. This is an example,” the spokeswoman said.
Good Jobs and Good Schools is clear about its goals.
“We’ll be on the ground and online mobilizing thousands of voters to support Senate Democrats. Without a Democratic takeover of the state Senate, a higher minimum wage and more funding for schools will be in jeopardy,” said Westin, the group’s leader.
Opponents are also rolling out their big-money guns.
A pro-charter school group, New Yorkers for a Balanced Albany, will spend $3.7 million by Tuesday’s election to help the GOP coalition retain a Senate majority.
The GOP backed charter schools in their battle with Mayor de Blasio earlier this year, helping secure space for them in public school buildings.
The stakes couldn’t be higher.
The Democrats run the state Assembly. Total Democratic dominance of the Legislature could give the unions the upper hand in trying to limit competition from an expansion of charter schools.
New York State United Teachers has spent $3 million to help Democratic candidates in seven key race.
Meanwhile, health-care workers union 1199/SEIU gave $100,000 to the Putnam County Democratic Party, and the CWA followed the UFT lead by also sending $100,000 to the Monroe County Democrats.
Powerful interests on each side of the Senate fight are exploiting New York’s porous campaign-finance laws to funnel as much money as they can into races, said a government watchdog.
Donors can give 10 times more money to a political party than the $10,300 contribution maximum for a Senate candidate.
The party committee then uses the funds on behalf of a candidate — thus skirting the lower candidate contribution limits.
“They’re using every loophole available. The local upstate political parties are getting all this money from downstate interest groups. And there’s an increase in spending by these independent expenditure groups,” said Bill Mahoney, a researcher at the New York Public Interest Research Group.
Rebranded ‘ACORN’ trying to help Dems win state Senate