Greens hit $4 million for election campaigns

The League of Conservation Voters (LCV) Action Fund said it has raised $4 million this election cycle as part of its “GiveGreen” program, a record for the program.

GiveGreen hosts a website that allows users to donate to federal and state candidates who support policies to fight climate change.

{mosads}The group also announced a major Sept. 17 fundraising drive called GreenStorm as part of GiveGreen.

“On Sept. 17 we’re meeting extreme weather with a storm of our own,” Gene Karpinski, president of LCV and the action fund, said in a statement.

“GreenStorm will focus the environmental community on supporting candidates with a proven record of taking on climate change deniers and securing a clean energy future.”

The new record fundraising level came in part due to a new partnership with NRDC Action Fund, which is affiliated with the Natural Resources Defense Council.

“This record-breaking support shows the value our supporters put on environmental champions,” said Frances Beinecke, president of NRDC Action Fund PAC and NRDC. “With big money forces like the Koch brothers backing anti-environmental candidates, our champions need all the help they can get.”

The Sept. 17 event will focus on four Democratic candidates for the Senate, all of whom have been among the top recipients under GiveGreen: Michigan’s Gary Peters, Iowa’s Bruce Braley, New Hampshire’s Jeanne Shaheen and Colorado’s Mark Udall.

GiveGreen raised or contributed more than $2 million in the 2012 election, LCV said. It hit that same total before Memorial Day this year.