Soros-Backed Dark Money Group Poured Millions Into Election Reform, Dem-Linked Groups, Filings Show
- A nonprofit backed by left-wing billionaire George Soros’ Open Society Foundations network doled out more than $77 million in 2021 to organizations linked to the Democratic Party as well as groups that seek to overhaul the electoral system, according to a copy of its tax filing.
- Fair Fight Action, which was founded by former Democratic Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams to fight alleged voter suppression, received $2 million from the Open Society Policy Center (OSPC) in 2021, according to the filing.
- OSPC gave $23.9 million to the Sixteen Thirty Fund, a “dark money” group that seeks to combat the “radical threats” posed by right-leaning nonprofits, according to Sixteen Thirty Fund President Amy Kurtz.
A nonprofit backed by left-wing billionaire George Soros’ Open Society Foundations network, doled out $77.53 million in 2021 to organizations with ties to the Democratic Party and groups that seek to expand voter participation, according to a copy of its tax filing.
Soros, who is the founding chair of the Open Society Foundations network, funds the Open Society Policy Center (OSPC), which gave at least $43.13 million to organizations that want to reform the electoral system to increase voter turnout, the 2021 filing shows. Soros’ nonprofit, which does not disclose its donors and purports to be “non-partisan,” spent at least $29.4 million funding groups that support Democratic Party policies and candidates.
OSPC awarded $23.9 million to the Sixteen Thirty Fund, a “dark money” group that seeks to combat the “radical threats” posed by right-leaning nonprofits, according to Sixteen Thirty Fund President Amy Kurtz. The Sixteen Thirty Fund “helped fund the development of several climate provisions” in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and also gave more than $18.9 million to the League of Conservation Voters, an environmental advocacy group that spent millions backing Democratic candidates in the 2022 midterm elections.
Soros’ Open Society Foundations network includes several politically active 501(c)(4) groups that are not required to disclose their donors as well as more conventional 501(c)(3) charities. Soros’ son and daughter sit on OPSC’s board of directors and the nonprofit’s budget was provided by a single $196 million donation from the Open Society Foundation network, according to CNBC.
Fair Fight Action, which was founded in 2018 by former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams to fight alleged voter suppression and make it easier for people to vote, received $2 million from OSPC in 2021, according to the filing. OSPC donated $2.75 million to the Ballot Initiative Strategy Center, a politically engaging nonprofit that tries to mobilize voter turnout by deploying progressive ballot initiatives, according to the group’s website.
Future Forward USA Action, a 501(c)(4) organization that does not disclose its donors, received $5.5 million from OSPC “to support policy advocacy on the Build Back Together legislative package and a global vaccine campaign,” the filing shows. Many of the package’s provisions were ultimately included in the IRA, a bill that did not receive a single Republican vote in the House and Senate.
The 501(c)(4) nonprofit donated more than $60 million during the 2020 election to its affiliated PAC, Future Forward USA, which shelled out over $75 million to back President Joe Biden’s campaign, Federal Election Commission records show.
OSPC gave a $15 million grant to help the nonprofit Tides Advocacy support the Electoral Justice Project, a group that is spearheaded by The Movement for Black Lives, a coalition of more than 50 Black Lives Matter-aligned associations that supports defunding the police and reshaping the criminal justice system. Soros’ “dark money” group also donated $500,000 to the Equity PAC, a left-wing political advocacy nonprofit, to prevent the city of Austin, Texas, from “unnecessarily” hiring more police officers, according to OPSC’s website and the filing.
OSPC sent $16.9 million to America Votes, a nonprofit that seeks to increase voter participation and teaches people how to vote by mail, as well as $6.48 million to Equis Labs, an organization that attempts to expand the Latino vote, according to the filing.
Soros, who is a Democratic megadonor, also poured $50 million into a Democratic super PAC in preparation for the 2024 election cycle. From 2021 to 2022, the billionaire personally donated nearly $180 million to help Democrats get elected, according to OpenSecrets, a nonpartisan platform tracking money in politics.
OSPC did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org.