Republican megadonors raise money for legal fight

Republican megadonors aim to raise up to $3 million to fund a legal challenge to New York’s new congressional map after the state’s recent redistricting.

A two page memo, first reviewed by CNBC and sent to financiers by former New York State Republican Chair Ed Cox and former Rep. John Faso, R-N.Y., is encouraging wealthy donors to help raise the gargantuan sum for the lawsuit. It was filed in state Supreme Court in Steuben County nearly two weeks ago.

The lead attorney for the lawsuit, Misha Tseytlin, is set to take part in a virtual meeting on Friday for donors interested in “learning more about this effort and want to help defeat the Democrats unconstitutional efforts to gerrymander New York Congressional Districts,” according to an invite reviewed by CNBC.

The effort comes after the state legislature approved new district lines that could give Democrats a boost in the fight for congressional control for the next decade.

The memo itself encourages financiers to give to either of two separate redistricting-focused groups, the National Republican Redistricting Trust and the Fair Lines America Foundation, which could also assist in the legal challenge.

Both are dark money organizations that do not publicly disclose their donors. The Fair Lines America Foundation has previously been funded by the influential Bradley Foundation and the Donors Trust. The fundraising memo explains that, if donors are interested in giving to these groups, their contributions will remain anonymous.

Litigation challenging the new map in state and federal courts could cost “one and a half to three million dollars,” the fundraising pitch says.

Cox said opponents of the district lines are raising what he calls “private funds” to finance the legal fight.

“The Democrats in Albany have used taxpayer dollars to violate New York’s Constitution with an extreme partisan gerrymander to cement their power for the next decade. We are raising private funds to support the state Constitution and thwart the Democrats power play,” Cox said in an emailed statement to CNBC on Wednesday.

Faso and Tseytlin did not respond to requests for comment.

The fundraising effort has kicked into gear after New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed off on a new congressional map that will likely give Democrats a massive advantage in future elections. The state legislature previously approved the redrawn map, which would give Democrats an edge in 22 of 26 districts in the upcoming elections, according to the Associated Press.

Republicans now hold eight of New York’s 27 seats.

The Republican-led lawsuit says “this Court should invalidate the unconstitutional congressional map” and repeatedly suggests it is a form of gerrymandering. The practice involves drawing district boundaries for one…