St. Joe-Benton Harbor News

Chokwe Pitchford for 79th District House of Representatives spent the most out of all the political committees based in cities associated with Berrien County during February, 2021, according to the Michigan Department of State.

The committee paid $12,601 to six vendors.

The largest expense was $189 paid to Hootsuite based in Benton Harbor for hootsuite access.

The second largest political spend from a committee operating in a city within Berrien County during the month came from Brad Paquette for State Representative. It spent $1,090 during that period on three different vendors.

What’s known as “dark money,” which comes from political non-profits and shell corporations, has greatly increased expenditures and donations in recent elections to record-breaking highs.

The amount raised and spent by candidates in the 2020 election cycle paled in comparison to the amounts raised in the 2016 election. Data from Transparency USA showed candidates in 2020 spent only roughly one-quarter ($136 million) of what was spent in 2016 ($445 million).

Political campaign financial data is often updated, leading to a sometimes incomplete picture of a committee or candidate's finances.

Committee	Expenditures	Paid Vendors
Chokwe Pitchford for 79th District House of Representatives	$12,601	6
Brad Paquette for State Representative	$1,090	3
Paquette Leadership Fund	$507	3
Committee to Elect Dan Vanden Heede	$264	1
Forward Together PAC	$70	2