Sherrod Brown Rejects Corporate PACs After Taking Millions From Them

Since 1993, Brown has taken more than $7.4 million from corporate PACs and lobbyists

Democratic senator Sherrod Brown (Ohio) is jettisoning corporate PACs, despite relying on them heavily over his nearly 30-year political career.

During a recent trip to the first-in-the-nation primary state of New Hampshire, Brownannounced to limited fanfare that he would reject corporate PAC donations if he runs for president. Brown, who has served in Congress since 1993 and elective office since 1975, is a relative latecomer to the decision. He has not yet announced if he is running for president.

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I., Vt.) was the first to opt out of accepting corporate PAC money while running for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2016. Following that precedent, Democrat senators Elizabeth Warren (Mass.), Kirsten Gillibrand (N.Y.), and Cory Booker (N.J.) made similar high-profile pledges in 2018. In total, more than 50 current Democratic members of Congress rejected campaign contributions from corporate PACs during the 2018 campaign cycle,according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

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