A new political action committee has spent $2.3 million against Oregon congressional candidate Susheela Jayapal, the older sister of Congressional Progressive Caucus Chairwoman Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), in the days leading up to Tuesday’s primary.
The Los Angeles-based Voters for Responsive Government, which has not publicly disclosed its donors, registered with the Federal Election Commission on April 1. Had it filed a day earlier, it would have been forced to disclose its donors, but because it waited, it has been allowed to spend millions without disclosing an agenda.
According to the filing, the PAC’s treasurer is Cary Davidson.
Voters for Responsive Government launched negative ads against Jayapal, falsely accusing her of starving cats and dogs and giving “crack pipes, straws, and tin foil to drug addicts” in response to Oregon’s drug crisis.
While the ads do not mention Gaza or Israel, it is believed that Jayapal may be being targeted for both her and her sister’s stance on Israel.
Jayapal is among seven Democrats and three Republicans on Tuesday’s ballot, but only Democratic state Rep. Maxine Dexter, Democratic Gresham City Councilor Eddie Morales, and Jayapal have raised a significant amount of money and are in contention.
Jayapal was the candidate to beat until a sudden influx of out-of-state money made its way into Oregon’s race.
The Intercept claimed Jayapal is being targeted by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC, which has been funneling money into the race through 314 Action. The deep-pocketed pro-Israel political community signaled its strategy to go after Jayapal early on, based on concerns her views align with her sister’s, who was one of the first to call for a ceasefire in Gaza.
According to a December Jewish Insider story titled “Jayapal sister’s congressional candidacy alarming Portland Jewish leaders,” there are concerns among the Jewish community that the two sisters’ views on Israel may be too aligned for comfort.
“While the elder Jayapal, 61, had no discernible history of public engagement on Middle East policy until recently, her approach to the war between Israel and Hamas suggests there is little distance between the two siblings on such matters — fueling concerns among local pro-Israel advocates who have yet to coalesce behind a viable candidate,” the article said.
The article also noted that “local pro-Israel advocates … have yet to coalesce behind a viable candidate,” and it named Dexter as a possibility. Dexter launched her campaign later that day.
Jayapal and Morales have both spoken out about the lack of transparency and has called on Dexter and 314 Action to be more transparent about their donors.
“Maxine Dexter claims to be for transparency in politics, but she and 314 Action are engaged in a dishonest and cynical ploy to obscure the donors propping up her campaign until just one day before the primary,” they said in a joint statement. “At a time when MAGA Republican mega-donors are interfering in Democratic primaries across the country, particularly against qualified candidates of color, voters deserve to know who is trying to buy this seat for a centrist candidate who doesn’t even live in the district.”
Outside money has also been pouring into Oregon’s 5th Congressional District race, which has prompted allegations from Democrats that Republicans are trying to push through a weaker candidate in order to help GOP incumbent Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer score a November win.
Most of the money, $475,000 that has been spent on ads and mail, has come from 314 Action.
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Like Voters for Responsive Government, 314 Action Fund will have to disclose its donors on Monday.
Calls to Jayapal were not returned.
