Allen donated $173,500 to Republican candidates and PACs, and $45,900 to DemocratsGETTY IMAGES
Seahawks and Trail Blazers Owner PAUL ALLEN this year has "made his largest-ever foray into congressional politics, donating $100,000 to a group aiming to keep Republicans in control of the U.S. House of Representatives," according to Jim Brunner of the SEATTLE TIMES. The June 14 donation, disclosed in mid-July, "went to Protect the House, a committee headed" by House Majority Leader KEVIN MCCARTHY (R-Calif.). Federal Election Committee records show the "largest chunk of Allen's $100,000 was sent to the National Republican Campaign Committee (NRCC), which received $33,900." An "additional $5,000 went to the Great America Committee, a PAC created by" VICE PRESIDENT PENCE. More than a dozen "other congressional Republicans from Iowa to New York received about $2,600." FEC records show in the '17-18 election cycle, Allen has "donated $173,500 to Republican congressional candidates and PACs compared with $45,900 to Democratic candidates and PACs." This represents "somewhat of a turnabout from Allen's past political giving on the federal level, which has tended to be more bipartisan." In the '16 election cycle, Allen "donated $74,500 to federal Democratic candidates compared with $52,400 to Republicans" (SEATTLE TIMES, 9/4).
