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Washington ― A pop-up political group that has spent more than $13.6 million on ads to boost Democrat Haley Stevens' campaign for U.S. Senate in Michigan was almost entirely funded by Center Forward, a dark-money organization that has historically relied on funding from major corporations and the industry group PhRMA.
In a new filing Monday, the group A Stronger Michigan disclosed that nearly all of the $11 million that it took in since its creation on May 28 came from Center Forward, a nonprofit organization that doesn't have to disclose its donors. Another $150,000 came from Michigan Forward 2026, which listed an address in Texas.
A Stronger Michigan, a super PAC, has spent about $13 million on ads to help Stevens, including $281,000 in radio advertising added Tuesday, according to campaign finance records. Another super PAC, the Center Forward Committee, is spending about $1.9 million.
"It’s an all too common problem for super PACs," said Michael Beckel, director of money in politics reform at Issue One, a bipartisan political reform organization in Washington. "Many of them take money from dark money groups that leave people in the dark as to who is funding them."
Their spending is part of an estimated $55 million dumped into campaign ads running in the state to aid Stevens or attack her rival, Abdul El-Sayed of Ann Arbor ― the bulk from outside groups, according to ad-tracking data reviewed Tuesday by The Detroit News. El-Sayed has seen just $5 million spent on ads, mostly from his campaign.
The $11-to-$1, lopsided spending in a statewide primary is unprecedented in recent Michigan history, analysts told The News last week.
Stevens and El-Sayed are locked in a bruising primary contest for the Democratic nomination to fill the seat of U.S. Sen. Gary Peters, D-Bloomfield Township, who is retiring. The primary is Aug. 4.
Center Forward CEO Cori Kramer said the organization is supporting Stevens because "time and again, Haley Stevens has shown that she's a fighter for the people of Michigan," noting that she was rated as the state's most effective Democrat in the U.S. House by the Center for Effective Lawmaking.
"Center Forward has always, and will continue to support candidates and elected leaders who focus on solving problems," Kramer said in a statement.
Stevens also has ties to Center Forward: She took a six-day trip to Portugal in June 2024 for a Center Forward conference with her mother that was paid for by the group.
El-Sayed has blasted the trip, which cost nearly $28,000 for Stevens and her mom, according to paperwork filed with the House Ethics Committee.
Centrist think tank supporting Stevens has corporate donors
Center Forward is a think tank based in Washington, D.C., formerly known as the Blue Dog Research Forum. While it doesn't have to disclose its donors, tax filings show that it's taken contributions over the years from industry-aligned groups, including Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA), the Biotechnology Innovation Organization, the Federation of American Hospitals and the Partnership for America's Health Care Future.
Corporate disclosures tracked by the Center for Political Accountability show that Center Forward has been funded over the years by Altria, Amazon, Chevron, Coca-Cola, ConocoPhillips, CVS, Dominion Energy, GE Aerospace, Meta and PG&E.
A representative for Center Forward said the group isn't legally affiliated with A Stronger Michigan; however, both are registered to the same address on Ingleside Avenue in McLean, Virginia, that also is linked to lobbyist Jeffries Murray, who sits on Center Forward's board and serves as its treasurer.
Murray is a lobbyist and founder of the bipartisan firm 535 Group LLC. His clients this year have included Northrop Grumman, tobacco giant Altria, quantum computing company D-Wave and Capstone Research Corp., which specializes in integrated air and missile defense systems engineering, according to lobbying disclosure reports.
Another Center Forward board member, former U.S. Rep. Robert “Bud” Cramer, D-Alabama, also has lobbied for Northrop Grumman and for Capstone.
Stevens, a four-term congresswoman from Birmingham, is a long-time supporter of military aid for Israel, while her rival, El-Sayed, wants to end all U.S. aid for foreign militaries.
The outside group that's led in spending for the Michigan Senate primary is United Democracy Project, which is a super PAC tied to the pro-Israel American Israel Public Affairs Committee. The group is on track so spend nearly $30 million through the primary, though future broadcast reservations could change.
Behind UDP and A Stronger Michigan, the third-ranked spender is another dark-money group that doesn't have to disclose its donors, the Center for Democratic Priorities, which has dropped about $6.5 million to support Stevens.
The super PAC is supporting El-Sayed called Fighting for Michigan last week reported $1.99 million in receipts, including $300,000 from the Institute for Middle East Understanding; $250,000 from former U.S. House hopeful Saikat Chakrabarti in California, who co-founded the progressive group Justice Democrats; $130,000 from Natasha Chokhani, an assistant law professor at the CUNY School of Law; and $115,000 from the group MI Leaders of Tomorrow.
Portugal trip details
Asked about Stevens' Portugal trip, Center Forward Executive Director Riley Kilburg said Stevens took part in the bipartisan group travel with 10 other members of Congress who participated in Center Forward's International Issues Conference in Portugal in 2024 that focused in part on issues related to U.S. competitiveness and national security.
Kilburg said the lawmakers took part in policy discussions and briefings with government officials, diplomats, industry experts and other stakeholders, and that the travel was conducted in compliance with House rules and approved through the House Ethics Committee's process for privately sponsored travel.
Stevens defended the privately funded trip this month after it came up during the WOOD-TV debate on July 7, saying it is "a very standard way for members to engage in critical policy."
"I was doing NATO meetings to learn about how we can better assist our partners to end the Ukraine war," she said.
Stevens also defended the trip when asked on CNN if third-party groups should be allowed to pay for such travel.
"I went on that trip to engage with colleagues on both sides of the aisle about supply chains and manufacturing and innovation. That is what Michigan is all about," Stevens said on CNN. "I'm never going to apologize or back down from a chance to advocate for Michigan manufacturing."
El-Sayed, during the debate, had questioned what Stevens got in exchange for Center Forward's paying for the flights to Lisbon for the congresswoman and her mother: "I want to understand what she promised them in return.”
Kilburg of Center Forward said the group "never asks Members of Congress for promises, commitments, or anything in return for participating in our programs."
"Our mission is to create opportunities for lawmakers from both parties to engage with subject matter experts, government officials, and one another on important policy issues in a substantive, bipartisan setting," Kilburg said by email.
"We do not endorse legislation, we do not lobby, and we do not condition participation on any legislative action or policy commitment. The purpose of these conferences is simply to provide Members with information, perspective, ideas, and relationships that help them govern more effectively."
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Dark money group emerges to bankroll pro-Stevens ads in Senate race
