Big bucks, shadowy companies: Election mystery money returns 

WASHINGTON (AP) — Campaign money from shadowy sources is back this presidential election.

At least $4 million of it is flowing to outside groups helping White House hopefuls, making it difficult to trace who’s behind the big bucks. Both parties benefit from money routed through obscure corporations, or from nonprofits that don’t have to disclose their donors.

The contributions are a reminder of federal court decisions in recent years, like Citizens United, that loosened prior restrictions in campaign finance laws. That can hide who’s really backing candidates — and what favors or influence could be owed should they get elected.

The AP counted more than two dozen groups that each gave at least $50,000 to presidential-aligned super PACs during the last three months of 2015, piecing together property tax documents, public records and millions of digital campaign finance records. At least half of those were unrecognizable names like family trusts, real estate holdings or firms that were far from household brands.

Sheila Krumholz, the executive director of the Center for Responsive Politics, said voters need to know the sources of political money so they can evaluate how candidates will behave in office.

Krumholz said, “Voters need to be able to consider the source and see whether there are hidden motives.”