Jeff Yass's Nationwide Pattern of Funding AG Races Signals Strategy to Advance School Privatization Beyond Pennsylvania

“We need to watch this closely and demand accountability from our elected officials to stop one billionaire from reshaping our children’s future.”

PHILADELPHIA – As billionaire Jeff Yass spends enormously to back candidate for Attorney General Dave Sunday, the All Eyes on Yass Coalition has exposed a troubling pattern of high Yass spending in additional states where attorneys general are used as a tool to advance school privatization. Yass has spent at least $5.4 million on Sunday’s campaign, more than he’s spent on any single candidate since Bill McSwain’s failed 2022 gubernatorial bid. 

In states where Yass's spending is significant (such as Texas and Kentucky) Attorneys General have repeatedly served as critical allies in advancing school privatization. In Texas, the attorney general waged lawsuits aimed at suppressing opposition to a voucher plan favored by Gov. Abbott and AG Paxton. In Kentucky, the attorney general has threatened legal action against school districts or officials who openly challenge the negative impact of vouchers on public education. Ohio’s attorney general also filed a lawsuit which public school advocates have said is aimed at deterring a legal challenge against the state’s voucher program. 

This pattern demonstrates a nationwide tactic used by pro-voucher advocates who are leveraging the AG office to dismantle public schools. 

Since 2022, Yass-funded PACs have spent: $14.9 million in Texas, $7.4 million in Kentucky, and $850,000 in Ohio.

Aly Shaw, Research Analyst at Little Sis and member of the All Eyes on Yass campaign, said:
“This is about more than isolated donations or one-off races—it’s a deliberate, nationwide strategy. Jeff Yass is methodically backing AG candidates who wield their power to push school vouchers, undermine public education, and shift resources toward private, profit-driven interests. We need to watch this closely and demand accountability from our elected officials to stop one billionaire from reshaping our children’s future to suit his personal agenda.”

Yass’s national strategy reveals a troubling trend: a powerful, well-funded effort to undermine public education by flooding AG races with money to promote a privatization agenda. As voters learn more about Yass’s growing influence on these key state races, they have an opportunity to demand that elected officials work for their communities, not for private interests.

To help voters stay informed, the All Eyes on Yass campaign recently launched the Yass Tracker – a powerful tool to see which Pennsylvania state officials have received Yass-related funding. EXPLORE THE YASS TRACKER HERE: https://www.alleyesonyass.com/yass-tracker