St. Joe-Benton Harbor News

Michael Brown for Governor spent the most out of all the political committees based in cities associated with Berrien County during August, 2021, according to the Michigan Department of State.

The committee paid $3,486 to 13 vendors.

The largest expense was $67 paid to Post Office based in Stevensville for mailing.

The second largest political spend from a committee operating in a city within Berrien County during the month came from Committee to Elect Pauline Wendzel. It spent $1,481 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
Michael Brown for Governor	$3,486	13
Committee to Elect Pauline Wendzel	$1,481	3
Forward Together PAC	$539	2
Brad Paquette for State Representative	$276	1
Paquette Leadership Fund	$230	1