All Eyes on Yass: Unusually Quiet Spending Raises Big Questions
“It could mean he’s prioritizing dark money, setting up a new PAC, or planning to dump millions later in the year to avoid scrutiny.”
PENNSYLVANIA — Billionaire Jeff Yass, the mega-donor who has spent hundreds of millions trying to buy Pennsylvania politicians and rig the rules for his own profit, is uncharacteristically quiet so far this year. Ahead of the April 8 campaign finance deadline, Yass’s usual money machine, the Students First PAC, filed early and revealed only $250,000 on hand and no new contributions from Yass. That’s a massive departure from his usual early-year donations to Students First PAC of $1 million or more per cycle.
Commonwealth Leaders Fund, another Yass-affiliated PAC, hasn’t yet filed for the April deadline. The PAC was required to file in March due to a special election and only reported $300,000 cash on hand at that time – also unusually low for a PAC that’s typically flush with Yass cash.
“This sudden silence doesn’t mean Yass is walking away,” said Arielle Klagsbrun, Pennsylvania Campaign Director at ACRE. “It could mean he’s prioritizing dark money, setting up a new PAC, or planning to dump millions later in the year to avoid scrutiny. Jeff Yass has felt our public pressure – he may try to shy away from the limelight, but voters still know exactly which billionaire is trying to rig the system for his own gain at the expense of everyday people.”
“After the rejection of Elon Musk’s billionaire bribes in Wisconsin, it’s no surprise that Jeff Yass may be changing his playbook in PA,” said Nick Gavio of Pennsylvania Working Families Party. “Billionaires should be running scared. Voters can clearly see through every front group, fake ad, and shady PAC trying to sell out our courts and our communities.”
“Working people in Pennsylvania are sick of watching billionaires like Jeff Yass try to buy power and silence our voices,” said Mary Collier of Pennsylvania Stands Up. “Yass has always tried to hide from the spotlight, whether he’s trying to defund Pennsylvania’s public schools or sitting in the same oligarchal inner circle as Elon Musk. But no matter how much money he throws around or how many front groups he uses, the days of billionaires calling the shots without a fight are over.”
The All Eyes on Yass campaign will continue tracking every dollar and every move Jeff Yass makes to influence Pennsylvania’s courts, elections, and laws, and will ensure voters know who’s trying to buy political power at the expense of working families. All Eyes On Yass will also monitor the growing influence of other right-wing billionaires like Elon Musk, whose wealth and platforms are being weaponized to push anti-democratic agendas and undermine public institutions in PA and across the country.
