Jeffrey Yass Uses Dark Money and Disinformation to Attack Pennsylvania Supreme Court

PENNSYLVANIA – Recent campaign finance research shows billionaire Jeff Yass has expanded his political machine by launching a new dark money group, Citizens for Term Limits, to bankroll attacks on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court justices up for a retention vote in November. The new nonprofit group, Citizens for Term Limits, appears to have been created by one of Yass’s more prominent PACs, Commonwealth Partners. According to the PA Department of State Business Database, the group shares an address with Commonwealth Partners and Commonwealth Foundation. 

Another Yass-tied PAC, the Commonwealth Leaders Fund, is sending out misleading mailers that blatantly misrepresent the Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s role in drawing the state’s congressional maps. Justice David Wecht blasted the mailer as a “brazen misrepresentation,” underscoring how Yass is willing to spread disinformation to tilt the courts in his favor. 

Arielle Klagsbrun, Pennsylvania Campaign Director with ACRE and member of the All Eyes On Yass campaign, released the following statement:

“Jeff Yass is hiding his spending in dark money groups that influence our elections and take control of PA’s courts. His newest front, Citizens for Term Limits, is set up in a way that prevents the public from ever knowing how many millions he’s invested. Meanwhile his Commonwealth Leaders Fund is spreading disinformation through blatantly misleading mailers that twist the facts about Pennsylvania’s congressional maps and try to deceive voters – yet another example of billionaire attempts to rig the rules in their favor. 

“This is exactly how billionaires like Yass rig the system: set up a string of shell groups, flood the zone with lies, and use their personal wealth to drown out the voices of PA voters. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court is one of the last checks on billionaire power, and it’s concerning that Yass may be building a dark money machine and spreading disinformation to try to take it over.”

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#AllEyesOnYass campaign is led by a diverse coalition of Pennsylvania-wide community organizations that expose the role Pennsylvania billionaire, Jeff Yass, plays in undermining Pennsylvania’s democracy. The coalition is committed to preserving the integrity of our democracy from the outsized influence of billionaires and corporations by taxing the rich and abolishing the uniformity clause, and passing campaign finance limits and lobbying reform bills like a gift ban.

Member groups include: ACRE Campaigns, Center for Coalfield Justice, Free the Ballot, Little Sis, Make the Road Action PA, OnePA, PA Stands Up, PA Working Families, and more.