PACs line up cash to sway races for judge, legislature, Louisville mayor. Here's a rundown

With less than a month until Election Day, several political action committees have reported raising hundreds of thousands of dollars in recent weeks to influence races across Kentucky.

Referred to under state law as unauthorized campaign committees (UCCs), these groups can receive contributions of unlimited amounts and use them from independent expenditures supporting or opposing candidates in specific races, as long as they do not coordinate with those campaigns.

Two new UCCs that appear to be ideological opposites have already started spending heavily on ads for nonpartisan judicial races, with the conservative one — Fair Courts America-Kentucky — recently stating a goal to spend up to $1.6 million boosting candidates in just three races.

Several familiar UCCs also plan to get involved in state legislative races in order to help Republican or Democratic candidates, while another that boosted eventual Democratic nominee Craig Greenberg in the primary for Louisville mayor is back with even more money to spend for him in the general.

More:Opponents of Kentucky abortion amendment have raised $3 million, outstripping other side

Here is a rundown of what these UCCs reported raising this week, their major donors, and what races they are likely to influence in the Nov. 8 election:

Competing PACs to enter judicial races

Fair Courts America-Kentucky entered the political fray in the state last week, with The Courier Journal first reporting that its hard-right affiliated federal super PAC, intent on reshaping "radical left" courts, plans to spend up to $1.6 million on three judicial races — two competitive seats for the Kentucky Supreme Court and the already expensive and high-profile race for Franklin Circuit Court.

This spending has already begun, with Fair Courts America-Kentucky already raising and spending $200,000 on TV ads, texts and mailers attacking Franklin Circuit Judge Phillip Shepherd. The incumbent judge is facing Joe Bilby, the general counsel of the Kentucky Department of Agriculture who is receiving the open financial support of Republican elected officials and committees.

According to its 30-day pre-general election filing with the Kentucky Registry of Election Finance (KREF) this week, Fair Courts America-Kentucky reported receiving all of its $200,000 from Restoration PAC, an affiliated federal super PAC that is largely funded by Richard Uihlein — a billionaire shipping company CEO from north of Chicago who is one of the most prolific GOP donors in the country.

While Shepherd faces open GOP opposition and attack ads from this new UCC, he is far from being without his own defenses, as he has now reported raising more than $500,000 for his campaign — a record for a circuit court race in Kentucky and well more than double what the Bilby campaign has raised.

More:Hard-right PAC forms 'battle plan' to take on 'radical left' judges in 3 Kentucky races

While the UCC has not yet aired ads in the Supreme Court races, the Fair Courts America "battle plan" indicated it would get involved in the District 6 race between incumbent Justice Michelle Keller and GOP state Rep. Joe Fischer, and the District 2 race between Court of Appeals Judge Kelly Thompson and Bowling Green lawyer Shawn Marie Alcott — likely backing Fischer and Alcott.

While Thompson and Alcott have raised roughly the same amount, Keller has a big fundraising lead over Fischer, raising nearly $250,000 — which is nearly four times what Fischer has raised, despite open support from GOP elected officials and committees.

There is also a new UCC called Liberty & Justice for Kentucky that has liberal and union donors and is expected to get involved in judicial races — though which specific races has not yet been determined.

The treasurer of Liberty & Justice for Kentucky told The Courier Journal it would get involved in unspecified judicial races inside and outside of Jefferson County, while its chairman has donated to Shepherd and Democratic candidates this cycle. It's latest KREF report shows it spent $100,000 on digital ads, though the UCC has not yet reported what races those independent expenditures are targeting.

Liberty & Justice for Kentucky raised $142,500 over the past month, including $100,000 from the Kentucky Education Association (the statewide teachers' union), $10,000 from the Kentucky AFL-CIO and $10,000 from Christy Brown, a Louisville philanthropist and prolific Democratic donor.

PACs look to expand GOP legislative supermajority

Among the UCCs expected to spend funds on races for the Kentucky General Assembly, the big player remains KSL Inc. — the Mitch McConnell-aligned PAC commonly referred to as Kentuckians for Strong Leadership — which spent well over $500,000 in support of Republicans in state legislative races in 2020.

KSL reported having $479,350 left to spend as of Sunday, then subsequently spent about $160,000 on TV ads in support of three GOP candidates in state House races in Louisville that are expected to be competitive.

The Republican UCC reported taking in an additional $113,000 in the past month, including an additional $75,000 from the Republican State Leadership Committee and $5,000 checks from five business leaders in Bowling Green, where the GOP hopes to knock off a Democratic incumbent.

Another UCC jumping in to help GOP legislative candidates stems from the socially conservative Commonwealth Policy Center, which raised $72,625 over the past month and reported $90,880 cash on hand left as of Sunday.

More:Another Kansas? Kentucky abortion amendment fight brings millions for opposing groups

The nonprofit conservative advocacy group pitched in $60,000 to its PAC this past month, with former Lt. Gov. Jenean Hampton giving $1,000 and Rocket Oil Co. CEO Barry Eveland now contributing $8,500.

After this reporting deadline, the Commonwealth Policy PAC reported spending $21,250 on mailers supporting 16 Republican legislative candidates, as well as mailers totaling the same amount in support of the anti-abortion constitutional amendment that is on the ballot.

Kentucky For Small Business, another UCC whose treasurer is the staff attorney for the House GOP, received $50,000 this summer from "gray machines" manufacturer Pace-O-Matic, though it has not yet filed a general election report.

Republicans have a dominant supermajority in both chambers that appears unlikely to diminish after this election cycle, as Democrats have only a few realistic opportunities to flip GOP seats and have a half-dozen vulnerable incumbents.

As for UCCs that will assist Democratic legislative candidates, none have emerged to spend for them yet, though several have built up a small amount of funding.

The Tri Counties Future Committee intends to get involved in local and state legislative races, having raised $68,500 from the Teamsters union, while The People's Campaign — also focused on local and legislative races — just received a $30,000 contribution from Christy Brown.

Greenberg to get another boost from PAC

A UCC that spent more than $300,000 in the primary to boost Greenberg to the general election in Louisville's race for mayor appears poised to spend even more to help him in the general election.

Forward Together has raised $436,000 since the primary, reporting $416,204 cash on hand as of Sunday.

Brown contributed another $150,000 to Forward Kentucky after her $100,000 check in the primary, with Greenberg's former 21c business partner Steve Wilson and his wife and Brown Forman heir Laura Lee Brown contributing another $200,000.

Other recent Forward Together contribution include $50,000 from Justice Action Network, a nonprofit criminal justice advocacy group that gave the same amount in the primary, and $10,000 from Transportation Cabinet Secretary Jim Gray, who also pitched in $50,000 in the primary.

More:Is a Mitch McConnell super PAC supporting Bill Dieruf for Louisville mayor?

Countering Forward Together in the Louisville market is KSL Inc., which just spent $90,000 on TV ads bashing Greenberg as a candidate who will continue the public safety policies of Mayor Greg Fischer, as violent crime rates have risen in recent years.

Greenberg has significantly outraised Jeffersontown Mayor Bill Dieruf, his Republican opponent, having raised just shy of $3 million over the course of the campaign. That total amounts to more than three times what Dieruf has raised.

Reach reporter Joe Sonka at jsonka@courierjournal.com and follow him on Twitter at @joesonka.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: PACs lineup funding in Kentucky races for judge, Louisville mayor