Soros Injects Big Money Into Small Philadelphia Race

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By Nathan Guttman May 8, 2017

No race is too small for liberal billionaire George Soros.

The Philadelphia Inquirer reported that Soros contributed $1.45 million to a candidate in a Democratic primary race for Philadelphia’s next district attorney.

The donation went for a PAC supporting civil rights lawyer Larry Krasner for the position. It puts Krasner and his backers in a much better financial position than any of the other five candidates in the primary race set for May 16 and could, according to experts, upend the race.

Soros, according to a spokesman, has been investing in local district attorney and sheriff races since 2015 and has so far poured more than $10 million into supporting candidates who oppose death penalties and who can reform law enforcement.

Republican mega-donors have also discovered in recent years the ability of big money to influence local races and the Koch brothers have been involved in state races and ballot initiatives opposing Obamacare and rejecting climate change.

Krasner comes from a strong civil rights background, but has never served as a prosecutor.

Contact Nathan Guttman at [email protected] or on Twitter @nathanguttman

Nathan Guttman, staff writer, was the Forward’s Washington bureau chief. He joined the staff in 2006 after serving for five years as Washington correspondent for the Israeli dailies Haaretz and The Jerusalem Post. In Israel, he was the features editor for Ha’aretz and chief editor of Channel 1 TV evening news. He was born in Canada and grew up in Israel. He is a graduate of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.