27OCT

New PAC Lower Costs Now spends $65.65m

1 min read

13:20UTC

Lower Costs Now filed its first independent expenditure on 1 October and had reported $65.65m in Senate races by 25 October; its FEC filings show $50.18m raised by 14 October.

← Back to Senate Democrats borrow $15m, outspend GOP Jump to analysis ↓

PoliticsAssessed

Key takeaway

Its FEC filings show $50.18m raised by 14 October, almost all from committees.

Lower Costs Now, a Super PAC (political action committee) new to this cycle's Senate races, filed its first independent expenditure on 1 October and had reported $65.65m in Senate contests by 25 October, according to the Federal Election Commission's file of independent expenditure reports⁠¹. An independent expenditure is money spent for or against a candidate that the group may not plan with any campaign.

The spending runs across the Senate map. Outside the states Lowdown covers separately, it includes $4.18m against Mike Rogers, the Republican nominee in Michigan, a seat Sabato's Crystal Ball moved to Leans Democratic in September. It also includes $3.38m against Mike Collins, the Republican nominee in Georgia, where The Cook Political Report moved the seat to Likely Democrat.

Senate Majority PAC (SMP), the largest Democratic Senate Super PAC, gave it $7.0m on 6 October⁠². Lower Costs Now's own filings to the FEC, covering 10 September to 14 October, show $50.18m in receipts: $30.0m from other committees, $20.0m in transfers from affiliated committees and $0.18m from individuals. It ended 14 October with $15.14m in cash.

Deep Analysis

In plain English

Lower Costs Now is a new political group that spends money on advertising in Senate races, to help Democrats. Groups like this, called super PACs, can raise unlimited sums but may not plan their spending with a candidate. It has told the Federal Election Commission (FEC), the US campaign-money regulator, that it spent $65.65m in October. Its filings show it raised $50.18m by 14 October, almost all from other political committees. One is Senate Majority PAC, the main Democratic Senate Super PAC, which gave $7.0m. Lowdown has not yet identified the other committees.

Deep Analysis

Root Causes

The FEC's 2026 filing deadlines decide what the public can see. Outside groups must file 24-hour reports of late spending within a day of an ad first airing, but a full report of who gave them money comes only on the regular schedule. A group formed late in the cycle can therefore appear in the spending data weeks before its donors appear in any report.

The Democratic Super PAC network also spreads its money across many committees. SMP funds its own affiliates and separate super PACs at once, as its $7.0m to Lower Costs Now and $17.5m to another group in the same fortnight show.

Sources:Federal Election Commission·Federal Election Commission

Mentions:Lower Costs Now →Mike Rogers →Mike Collins →Senate Majority PAC →Michigan →Georgia (U.S. state) →Sabato's Crystal Ball →Cook Political Report →FEC →Josh Turek →US Senate →Iowa →Texas →Ohio →Kansas →

First Reported In

Update #22 · Senate Democrats borrow $15m, outspend GOP

Federal Election Commission· 27 Oct 2026

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Causes and effects

Caused by

SMP spends $108.70m in two weeks

SMP's $7.0m is the only money behind Lower Costs Now on any filed report.

Occurred 14 Oct 2026

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This Event

New PAC Lower Costs Now spends $65.65m

A super PAC that had filed no Senate spending before October is now one of the largest spenders in those races, backed by $50.18m raised by 14 October, almost all from committees.

Different Perspectives

Department of Justice (DOJ)

DOJ appealed to the 9th Circuit after Judge David O. Carter did not rule by a noon deadline on 22 October that DOJ itself had set, seeking to have California set aside mail ballots from more than 20,000 listed voters. Its case is that ineligible votes cancel lawful ones; the panel dismissed the appeal 2-1 on 26 October.

Lower Costs Now

Lower Costs Now reported $7.37m in Kansas on 24 and 25 October, part of $65.65m in Senate races since its first independent expenditure on 1 October, including $17.21m for Josh Turek in Iowa. Its FEC filings show $50.18m raised by 14 October.

MAGA Inc

MAGA Inc, the super PAC aligned with Donald Trump, filed $7.20m against James Talarico on 22 October, taking its Texas spending to $37.65m. Of that, $30.12m is against Talarico and $7.53m is for Ken Paxton, the Republican nominee.

Senate Majority PAC (SMP)

SMP's pre-general report shows it spent $108.70m from 1 to 14 October, including $65.0m to WinSenate and $10.0m to Texas Forever, and ended with $32.72m. Texas Forever has reported $19.40m against Ken Paxton since 1 October.

Senate Leadership Fund (SLF)

SLF's pre-general report shows $88.42m in cash on 14 October and $18.98m raised in the fortnight, none of it from Elon Musk. It has since reported $12.07m against Sherrod Brown in Ohio, and its $2.7m to Plains PAC preceded that committee's first Kansas buy on 25 October.

National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC)

The NRSC's pre-general report shows nothing spent with Ashley Hinson in Iowa, or with its nominees in six other states, from 1 to 14 October, after $5.54m with Hinson in September. It took no new loan and ended the fortnight with $25.20m in cash and $20m of debt.

Written with AI from Lowdown's published reporting. Not individually reviewed by an editor. Editorial standards.