Did the Cruz/Kasich Gentleman’s Agreement Effect Super PAC Spending in Indiana?

The well-publicized pact between the presidential campaigns of Ted Cruz and John Kasich, had quite an impact on super PAC spending in the Hoosier State.

Shortly after news of the agreement broke on April 25, super PAC independent expenditures opposing Kasich began to decline while those supporting Cruz skyrocketed. At the same time, super PAC spending opposing Donald Trump increased significantly. 💸

A closer look at independent expenditure reports from Trusted Leadership PAC reveal the Cruz-aligned super PAC quickly reversed course on its opposition spending targeting Kasich after the agreement between the two campaigns was announced.

The remaining money from the group’s anti-Kasich expenditure was instead used to support Cruz.

Big Picture Spending

Since last year, the presidential campaigns themselves have spent very little on the Indiana primary — only $622,834 when the expenditure totals for Cruz, Kasich, Trump, Hillary Clinton, and Bernie Sanders are combined.

Instead, super PAC spending overshadowed candidate spending during the Indiana primary with $5,420,279 being spent supporting or opposing candidates. Most notably, $1,808,203 was spent opposing Kasich in Indiana, a figure that dropped off significantly after his campaign’s agreement with Cruz became public.

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