Pennsylvania Stands Up PAC is a political action committee (PAC) associated with the left-of-center advocacy group Pennsylvania Stands Up. It is a hybrid PAC that assists in financing Pennsylvania Stands Up’s advocacy for left-of-center prison, climate, and housing policies. [1]
Background
Pennsylvania Stands Up PAC is a left-of-center political action committee focused on advancing left-wing causes in Pennsylvania associated with the 501(c)(4) advocacy group Pennsylvania Stands Up. [2]
Pennsylvania Stands Up was formed as a consolidation of local chapters in Pennsylvania dedicated to advocating for left-wing housing and voting policies. [3] Chapters have worked to end solitary confinement, [4] ensure “redistributive justice,” and enact “universal living wages.” [5] Carrie Santoro, the executive director of PA Stands Up [6] and a Lehigh Valley Stands Up founder, [7] is also the treasurer of PA Stands Up PAC. [8]
Finances
From 2021-2022, Pennsylvania Stands Up PAC received $5,146 from Get Organized BK, [9] a New York-based PAC that granted the PAC’s affiliated 501(c)(4) Pennsylvania Stands Up $2,573 from 2021-2022. [10] This New York-based PAC also gave $3,196 to Peter Hogness, [11] affiliated with the left-of-center group Seed the Vote. [12] This group, dedicated to registering voters to elect left-wing candidates, named Pennsylvania Stands Up as a 2022 canvassing partner. [13] Seed the Vote focused its efforts on building the left in swing states. [14]
Pennsylvania Stands Up receives a portion of its money from Pennsylvania Stands Up PAC, with the PAC paying it $212,867 in the 2022 election cycle. [15] PA Stands Up PAC also funds local PA Stands Up chapters such as Lancaster Stands Up, [16] Lehigh Valley Stands Up, [17] and NEPA Stands Up. [18]
From 2019-2020, the PAC received $27,441 from the San Francisco-based left-of-center Everyday People PAC [19] and $5,000 from the AFL-CIO member union Communications Workers of America. [20]
From 2020-2022, it made 100% of its independent expenditures on behalf of Democratic Party candidates. According to OpenSecrets, Pennsylvania Stands Up PAC made $119,726 in expenditures on behalf of Joe Biden in the 2020 cycle [21] and $161,583 in the 2022 cycle. [22]