{{Short description|Democratic political action committee}} {{Infobox organization | name = WelcomePAC | formation = {{start date and age|2021|09|16}} | founder = Lauren Harper<br>Liam Kerr | registration_id = C00786830 | status = Hybrid PAC | website = {{URL|https://welcomepac.org|WelcomePAC.org}} }}
'''WelcomePAC''' is a political action committee that recruits and supports candidates affiliated with the centrist Blue Dog Coalition of the United States Democratic Party.<ref name="auto">{{Cite web |last=Gaetjens |first=Bob |title=WelcomePAC welcomes Portage Republicans, independents into 'big tent' Democratic party |url=https://www.record-courier.com/story/news/2022/01/26/welcomepac-recruits-republicans-into-big-tent-democratic-party-kent-portage-county/9217046002/ |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=Record-Courier |language=en-US}}</ref>
The group launched during the 2022 midterm election cycle and has been described by the New York Times as a "Democratic-aligned outfit that applies insurgent tactics to support center-left candidates in swing districts".<ref name="auto1">{{Cite news |last1=Hounshell |first1=Blake |last2=McFadden |first2=Alyce |date=2022-06-03 |title=Is Jan. 6 a Winning Political Issue? We're About to Find Out. |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/03/us/politics/california-house-races-jan-6.html |access-date=2023-03-28 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> The organization's co-founder has articulated its aim to "become the Justice Democrats of the political center".<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hounshell |first=Blake |date=2022-11-19 |title=Democratic Centrists Lament Missed Opportunities to Keep the House |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/18/us/politics/democrats-midterms.html |access-date=2023-03-28 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>
The organization is registered with the Federal Election Commission as a hybrid PAC and raised more than $2 million in its inaugural cycle to support Democrats and oppose Republicans in Ohio and California.<ref>{{Cite web |title=WELCOMEPAC - committee overview |url=https://www.fec.gov/data/committee/C00786830/ |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=FEC.gov |language=en}}</ref> According to the magazine ''New York'', WelcomePAC is funded by billionaires Reid Hoffman, Michael Bloomberg, James Murdoch and his wife Kathryn, Rory Gates, the Walton family, and Joe Manchin and Heather Manchin's centrist Americans Together organization.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Zuylen-Wood |first=Simon van |date=2025-10-31 |title=Socialism or Abundance? |url=https://nymag.com/intelligencer/article/socialism-vs-abundance-bernie-sanders-aoc-mamdani-democrats-future.html |access-date=2025-11-01 |website=Intelligencer |language=en}}</ref>
== Direct action work == === Ohio State House recruitment and endorsements === In early 2022, WelcomePAC conducted a campaign to recruit "big tent" candidates for the Ohio House of Representatives in the state's Northeast region.<ref name="auto"/><ref>{{Cite web |title=WelcomePAC seeking candidates for 'big tent' Democratic Party |url=https://chroniclet.com/news/289848/welcomepac-seeking-candidates-for-big-tent-democratic-party/ |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=chroniclet.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=WelcomePAC comes to Medina County to recruit Democratic candidates |url=https://medina-gazette.com/news/289341/welcomepac-comes-to-medina-county-to-recruit-democratic-candidates/ |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=medina-gazette.com |language=en}}</ref> Later in the cycle, the group endorsed 17 state legislature candidates with a commitment to "building a big tent Democratic Party that welcomes in independents and moderate Republicans" in Ohio.<ref>{{Cite web |title=WelcomePAC endorses Regan Phillips for Ohio House |url=https://chroniclet.com/news/311954/welcomepac-endorses-regan-phillips-for-ohio-house/ |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=chroniclet.com |language=en}}</ref> In July 2022, the Ohio Capitol Journal reported that LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman had made contributions to WelcomePAC's endorsed state legislature candidates.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Zuckerman |first1=Jake |date=2022-07-26 |title=LinkedIn co-founder pours money into Ohio races |url=https://ohiocapitaljournal.com/2022/07/26/linkedin-co-founder-pours-money-into-ohio-races/ |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=Ohio Capital Journal |language=en-US}}</ref>
=== Ohio Senate split ticket campaign === In late 2022, WelcomePAC organized a series of press conferences throughout Ohio featuring local leaders with Republican backgrounds supporting Democratic Congressman Tim Ryan's campaign for Senate against Republican author and venture capitalist JD Vance.<ref>{{Cite web |last=SPEICHER |first=MELANIE |date=2022-09-23 |title=Lifelong Republicans gather in Cincinnati |url=https://www.sidneydailynews.com/2022/09/23/lifelong-republicans-gather-in-cincinnati/ |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=Sidney Daily News |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last1=Evans |first1=Nick |date=2022-10-04 |title=Ohio Republican group urges GOP, swing voters to reject J.D. Vance |url=https://ohiocapitaljournal.com/2022/10/04/ohio-republican-group-urges-gop-swing-voters-to-reject-j-d-vance/ |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=Ohio Capital Journal |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-10-04 |title=Group of former Republican Ohio leaders tout their support for Tim Ryan |url=https://www.statenews.org/government-politics/2022-10-04/group-of-former-republican-ohio-leaders-tout-their-support-for-tim-ryan |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=The Statehouse News Bureau |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=GOP group in Toledo visit urges voters to back Democrat Tim Ryan |url=https://www.toledoblade.com/local/politics/2022/10/18/gop-urges-voters-back-democrat-tim-ryan/stories/20221018138 |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=The Blade |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Republicans urge support for Ryan |url=https://sanduskyregister.com/news/413679/republicans-urge-support-for-ryan/ |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=sanduskyregister.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Andrew J. Tobias |first=cleveland com |date=2022-11-03 |title=Democrat Tim Ryan is betting on ticket-splitters to win Ohio's U.S. Senate seat. Can it work? |url=https://www.cleveland.com/news/2022/11/democrat-tim-ryan-is-betting-on-ticket-splitters-to-win-ohios-us-senate-seat-can-it-work.html |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=cleveland |language=en}}</ref> The group also ran digital advertisements in the state, encouraging voters who had split their tickets between Republican Governor Mike DeWine and Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown in 2018 to consider voting for Ryan in 2022.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Oz-Shapiro. Warnock-Kemp. Split-ticket voters loom large in midterms. |language=en-US |newspaper=Washington Post |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/elections/2022/10/22/ticket-splitting-midterms/ |access-date=2023-03-28 |issn=0190-8286}}</ref>
In late October 2022, the group announced an advertising campaign to persuade both moderate and Trump-aligned Republicans not to vote for JD Vance and encourage them to split their tickets in support of Tim Ryan.<ref name="auto2">{{Cite web |title=Democratic group backing Ryan in Ohio Senate race targets GOP ticket-splitters |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2022-election/democratic-group-backing-ryan-ohio-senate-race-targets-gop-ticket-spli-rcna53945 |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=NBC News |date=25 October 2022 |language=en}}</ref> The six-figure campaign consisted of print, radio, and digital ads.<ref name="auto2"/> Despite unexpectedly competitive poll numbers against Vance, Ryan received minimal support from national Democratic Party committees.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Tim Ryan 'all by his lonesome' as national Democrats ignore close Ohio Senate race |url=https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2022-election/national-democrats-ignore-ohio-senate-race-leaving-tim-ryan-lonesome-rcna51435 |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=NBC News |date=10 October 2022 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Linskey |first=Annie |date=October 19, 2022 |title=Tim Ryan asks why Democrats 'don't smell blood' and help him in Ohio |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2022/10/19/ryan-ohio-senate-vance-democrats/ |newspaper=Washington Post}}</ref> According to Dayton-based NBC News affiliate WDTN, WelcomePAC was the only national Democratic group to invest significantly in supporting Ryan's campaign.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-11-03 |title=How much each of Ohio's U.S. Senate candidates has in contributions |url=https://www.wdtn.com/news/your-local-election-hq/how-much-each-of-ohios-u-s-senate-candidates-has-in-contributions/ |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=WDTN.com |language=en-US}}</ref> In November 2022, Ryan lost the race for Senate.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kinery |first=Emma |title=Republican J.D. Vance defeats Democrat Tim Ryan in Ohio Senate race, NBC News projects |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2022/11/08/ohio-senate-results-jd-vance-beats-tim-ryan-nbc-news-projects.html |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=CNBC |date=9 November 2022 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=J.D. Vance defeats Tim Ryan in Ohio U.S. Senate race |url=https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/politics/elections/2022/11/08/ohio-senate-race-election-results-2022-midterm-jd-vance-tim-ryan/69589878007/ |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=The Enquirer |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Siegel |first=Josh |title=GOP keeps Ohio Senate seat with Vance win |url=https://www.politico.com/news/2022/11/08/tim-ryan-jd-vance-ohio-senate-race-results-2022-00064777 |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=POLITICO |date=9 November 2022 |language=en}}</ref>
=== Activities in California's 41st congressional district === WelcomePAC supported Democrat Will Rollins against Republican Representative Ken Calvert in the 2022 race for California's 41st congressional district.<ref name="auto1"/><ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-08-28 |title=These PACs are trying to beat Inland Rep. Ken Calvert |url=https://www.pressenterprise.com/2022/08/28/these-pacs-are-trying-to-beat-inland-rep-ken-calvert |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=Press Enterprise |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Skelley |first=Geoffrey |date=2022-06-06 |title=California's Primary Races To Watch |url=https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-20-california-primary-races-to-watch/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220606100050/https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/the-20-california-primary-races-to-watch/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=June 6, 2022 |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=FiveThirtyEight |language=en-US}}</ref> Rollins lost to Calvert in the November general election.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Election update Monday: Rollins concedes to Calvert in 41st Congressional District race |url=https://www.desertsun.com/story/news/politics/elections/2022/11/22/election-update-monday-rollins-concedes-to-calvert-in-us-house-race/69669375007/ |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=The Desert Sun |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-11-15 |title=Rep. Ken Calvert is apparent winner over Will Rollins in 41st Congressional District |url=https://www.pressenterprise.com/2022/11/15/rep-ken-calvert-is-apparent-winner-over-will-rollins-in-41st-congressional-district |access-date=2023-03-28 |website=Press Enterprise |language=en-US}}</ref>
== References == {{Reflist}}
Category:United States political action committees