David Hogg has yet to bring home the bacon.
Two months ago, the recently defenestrated Democratic National Committee vice chair ignited a firestorm among Democrats by vowing to deploy $20 million from his “grassroots” Leaders We Deserve PAC against incumbents in safe blue districts.
But there’s just one small problem.
Leaders We Deserve only has a measly $1.5 million cash on hand, far short of the promised $20 million it has committed to spend, according to Federal Election Commission records for the month of May.
Worse yet, the PAC has never actually raised that kind of money in the two years since its inception, only raking in $848,000 last month, while spending about $798,000. Close to three-quarters of those expenses appear to have largely been gobbled up on operational costs such as travel, payroll, consulting fees, meals, etc.
This includes $10,502 that went directly into Hogg’s personal pockets.
“David Hogg spent his spring on a kamikaze mission right towards the heart of the Party to raise money for his PAC and, as it turns out, he spent more money on consultants pitching negative stories on the Party than on candidates actually trying to run and win campaigns,” a Democratic strategist vented to The Post.
“That’s the definition of a grift right there, and should be a red flag for every donor, candidate, and activist that he’s already fooled.”
Hogg made waves again Friday by rolling out his PAC’s endorsement of socialist New York City mayoral wannabe Zohran Mamdani, whom the 25-year-old hailed as “authentic” and “real,” ahead of Tuesday’s Big Apple primary contest.
Given the current fundraising trends from his PAC, critics are skeptical of Hogg’s ability to make good on the $20 million goal, which had sparked fierce divisions within the party.
Only $6,000 of the $798,000 outlays Hogg’s PAC reported in May appear to have actually gone to backing candidates — Illinois’s 2nd District congressional hopeful Robert Peters and Ohio state Rep. Christine Cockley (D).
“At this rate, he would only have to raise a little over $3 billion in order to get his promised $20 million to primary candidates. THIS should be the story, folks,” New York state Sen. James Skoufis, who vied unsuccessfully earlier this year to chair the DNC, chided.
The $20 million target is ambitious. Since Leaders We Deserve was launched in 2023, it has only raised $15.3 million in total (all but $1.5 million of that has been spent). During that timeframe, Hogg pocketed some $225,000 from the PAC, FEC records show.
Notably, the announcement from Hogg’s PAC did not give a specific timeline for the spending; however, in media appearances, the 25-year-old political neophyte has expressed a keen interest in the 2026 House midterms, which are only in the pre-season right now and about a year away from most voters casting primary ballots.
Nevertheless, it’s clear that he doesn’t have anywhere near that kind of cash sitting in his PAC right now.
“The grift that keeps on grifting,” a high-ranking Democrat outside of the DNC griped to The Post. “He needs an internship. Not a PAC.
“The only thing David Hogg can actually raise is eyebrows, because he’s never held a job, won a race, or lifted a finger to help anyone — unless it helps him make money first and foremost,” that Democrat, who has dealt with Hogg in the past, added.
The less-than-desired war chest comes despite the fact that Hogg was caught snatching DNC contact lists to solicit donations, a move that has infuriated party insiders, as The Post previously reported.
Typically, DNC leaders are expected to raise funds for the party, rather than tapping Democratic resources for their personal operations.
“Many non-profits that do serious, impactful grassroots organizing have lost important donors to Leaders We Deserve due to David’s highly impressive ability to center himself in the narrative as a bold fighter,” Cameron Kasky, a former classmate of Hogg’s at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, said.
Hogg, who was catapulted into the national spotlight due to his activism in the wake of the tragic Parkland school shooting in which a sicko gunned down 17 people, was elected as one of three DNC vice chairs in February.
During his tenure, he quickly rubbed many insiders the wrong way with his focus on his outside operations. But in April, that drama came to a head when he unveiled his plans to target “asleep at the wheel, out-of-touch, and ineffective” incumbent Democrats in their primaries.
Hogg caveated that he was only focused on effectiveness, not necessarily age or ideology and that he would stay out of competitive races to avoid jeopardizing Democrats’ chances of beating Republicans in the general election.
But the backlash was immediate, and the drama consumed the DNC at a time in which the party was licking its wounds from the 2024 election drubbing and trying to regain its mojo to take on the Trump machine.
DNC chairman Ken Martin was forced to publicly split with Hogg, telling the party apparatus in a call that “Our job is to be neutral arbiters,” and adding that, “We can’t be both the referee and also the player at the same time.”
Martin also pushed DNC leaders to sign a neutrality pledge, something Hogg refused to do.
Earlier this month, leaked audio showcased a frustrated Martin, who appeared to be on the verge of tears at times, bluntly complaining about the headaches and distraction Hogg caused for the party.
“I don’t think you intended this, but you essentially destroyed any chance I have to show the leadership that I need to,” Martin told Hogg in a leaked May call revealed by Politico. “So it’s really frustrating.”
That same month, the DNC Credentials Committee concluded that Hogg and DNC Vice Chair Malcolm Kenyatta were improperly elected to their roles in violation of the party’s gender parity rules.
To rectify that, the panel later urged the DNC to hold new elections. Hogg opted to step aside on June 11 instead, pointing to his “fundamental disagreement” with top brass over his role. Kenyatta won back his perch.
The Post reached out to Hogg’s reps and Leaders We Deserve for comment.
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