Outside money

Bolden and Thomas had already outraised their Republican counterparts significantly, with their campaigns reporting a combined $3.4 million in donations, compared to roughly $560,000 for the GOP nominees, as of late October.

But outside groups spent more than twice as much as the candidates, spending a combined $7.6 million to support the Democratic nominees, including at least $5.25 million from dark money sources, compared to less than $800,000 total for Fink and O’Grady.

Financial disclosure reports showed Harris and Bolden had a nearly nine-to-one financial advantage in the race, including both campaign and outside sources. Those totals will likely rise with post-election disclosures.

Justice for All, the Michigan PAC, reported a $1 million contribution from Michael Bloomberg, the billionaire former New York mayor. State Victory Action, a super PAC funded by George Soros and other billionaires, gave $560,000.

Justice Project Action, the Massachusetts-based nonprofit that does not disclose donors, certainly spent more than $4.4 million on the Michigan race, as voters throughout the state received political mail from the group ahead of the election.

The mailers compared the nominees’ endorsements from abortion rights and gun safety groups, casting Bolden and Thomas in a more positive light.

While the mailing disclosed it was paid for by The Justice Project Action — as required under state law — the return address listed on the mailing was for the Lansing office of the Michigan Association for Justice, formerly known as the Michigan Trial Lawyers Association.

“I don’t know why (The Justice Project Action) did that,” Stephen Pontoni, Michigan Association for Justice’s executive director, told Bridge. He declined to be interviewed about the Justice for All PAC’s approach or activities.

Fink, one of the Republican nominees who lost last week, told Bridge he does not have strong feelings about the source of the money that flowed into the Michigan Supreme Court races.

But he had noticed the address on the mailer from the dark money group, which he called “strange.” He added: “It does start to kind of raise questions like, What's the point of these disclosures?”

Because the mailings didn’t explicitly ask recipients to vote for the candidates, Justice Project Action has no requirements to disclose how much it spent, leaving the true extent of their support hidden.