With $400 million spent on ballot measures and candidates, 2026 is shaping up to be the most expensive midterm in California history. The state’s wealthiest moguls are donating tens of millions to squash a billionaire tax, fend off AI regulation, and uplift candidates who share their priorities (or will do their bidding).

But for every billionaire getting active in politics, there are twice or even three times as many Political Action Committees (PACs) spending obscene amounts to make political friends and influence voters.

Their names are as anodyne as their aims are ambitious: Golden State Promise; Leading the Future; Think Big. But understanding which PAC is funded by which donors, and what they’re trying to do with their bottomless coffers, requires more time than any single voter could possibly devote.