By Mary Jo Pitzl and Alia Beard Rau | The Arizona Republic | azcentral.com 11:40 p.m. MST August 23, 2014
Donors — some secret, others named — have directed more than $200,000 in outside money to a handful of Democratic legislative races.
Overshadowed by the million-dollar spending in the higher-profile statewide GOP contests, this money has come from groups trying to influence the few Democratic primaries where there actually are more candidates than seats available.
The outside groups funding certain candidates and working for the defeat of others offer little insight other than to say they’re backing people who can make a difference and whose views align with theirs.
Unlike many of the Republican primaries, where Medicaid expansion has been a consistent issue, no single issue defines the differences between the Democratic candidates.
“We support candidates we agree with,” said Max Fose, who is running Arizona 2014, an independent-expenditure group that has spent about $24,000 thus far on three legislative candidates. “There’s really no master plan here.”
Outgoing House Minority Leader Chad Campbell, D-Phoenix, said outside spending is not a partisan issue.
Related: U.S. Court to Hear Case on Voting Restrictions as Arizona Prepares for Polls
