Democrat Jordan Wood is running for Maine Congressional District 2, but his connection to Mothership Strategies raises questions about his devotion to constituents. An anonymous source who worked with Mothership has brought forward allegations of unethical approaches used by the firm to procure funds from voters, which both Wood and the firm deny in separate responses to The Maine Campus.
Political Action Committees (PACs) are a common apparatus used to raise funds that go toward supporting candidates. Super PACS allow for unlimited donations by independent entities, and do not formally coordinate with campaigns. PACs that rely on convincing people to donate using questionable methods– including misleading, high-pressure political messaging– are commonly considered Scam PACs.
“Super PACs will contribute to the burnout and frustration that folks feel around elections,” said University of Maine political science professor Rob Glover.
A faceless company out of Washington, D.C. called Mothership Strategies is behind some of the emails asking Maine voters to donate toward state candidates and national politicians. The company, founded in 2014, helps clients raise funds and promote campaigns through mass messaging. Jake Lipsett, one of its three founders, is married to Wood, who will be on the ballot next year.
There have been criticisms against Mothership Strategies for funneling money into itself, which the firm responded to in a Medium article, assuring readers that they operate by the book. But according to a former employee who wishes to remain unnamed in order to speak freely, spending habits are not where the firm truly faults.
“It’s not so much about where this money is going as how they’re getting it,” they said.
At first, the former employee assumed the company was just using outdated, flawed tactics in good faith. Over time, they found that its harsh methods of persuading people to donate– especially elderly supporters– may have been intentional.
“I didn’t realize that they were actively standing in the way of doing good,” the former employee said.
Managing partner and founder at Mothership Strategies Greg Berlin told Maine Campus that older populations are simply the most politically engaged, which naturally inclines them to donate more than less-engaged age groups. An investigation by CNN in 2024 found that elderly voters being taken advantage of financially by misleading political messages is a national trend.
Mothership Strategies often sends text and email messages to voters with a sense of urgency regarding an immediate issue that requires payment as a means to resolve it. According to the former employee, this sort of bombardment is a tactic used to ensure that recipients feel obligated to donate.
Opposingly, Berlin considers strong messaging an imperative tool for the Democratic Party when up against Republicans like Trump.
“We believe Democrats must fight fire with fire. Hard-hitting, urgent language describing the stakes of this moment is a part of that,” said Berlin on behalf of Mothership.
Emails from Mothership Strategies would claim that any amount donated would be matched, often more than 500%. However, there was no specific donor who was matching the amount in addition to regular donations, according to the former employee. Instead, Mothership would use small-dollar donations from other donors to match each other as a loophole. This practice has since been regulated.
ActBlue is a non-profit organization that securely processes donations and helps progressive committees facilitate fundraising efforts. Part of their mission involves monitoring organizations and enforcing regulations that protect donors from deceptive practices, according to the website.
With promises to match donations no longer viable under ActBlue standards, the former employee noted that Mothership is now leaning more heavily on survey questions to make up for the loss. To submit a response, it is implied that payment may be required. In fact, this strategy created a widespread misconception about the Donald Trump assassination attempt.
Trump’s attempted assailant, Thomas Crooks, donated $15 to a Democratic Super PAC, despite being a registered Republican. Mothership Strategies was behind the Progressive Turnout Project solicitation that Crooks donated to, which was a survey question. The question was written along the lines of “Will you watch Trump’s inauguration?” The former employee said that the message was too generic to hint at a political affiliation.
They added that the company relies on consequential messaging, which indicates that providing money will help donors avoid an undesirable outcome. An example shared by the former employee is a survey that asks, “Can you confirm you’re still a Democrat? If you don’t respond, we’ll mark you as a Republican,” followed by an implied requirement to submit the response with a donation.
Glover added that despite Maine’s highly advanced election system, aggressive Super PACs lead to donor fatigue and widespread skepticism surrounding campaign efforts.
“When we’re simultaneously being bombarded by digital media from national Super PACs, it can undermine trust in even those widely supported models of campaign fundraising,” said Glover.
While the amount earned by Mothership through donations is reported in Federal Election Commission (FEC) data, a portion of it does not go directly toward specific campaigns, but rather purchasing email lists, advertising fees and other fundraising expenses, according to the Medium post.
Berlin shared that Mothership Strategies raised over $1.1 billion “for Democrats,” with $500 million toward campaigns, congressional caucus PACs and members of Congress.
Mothership Strategies and its clients are abiding by regulations due to a limit on the amount of money that can be funneled directly into a campaign. However, donors are not necessarily made aware that their contribution could go elsewhere.
Jonathan Wayne, executive director of the Maine Commission on Governmental Ethics and Election Practices, offers a solution for donors who wish to contribute but desire more information. On the Ethics Commission Data Portal, a search bar allows people to look up PACs by name to determine its purpose and leaders. There are also campaign finance reports available for the public to review.
Since Mothership is not identified on the messages they send out on behalf of these PACs, there is no clarity over spending regulations to the donors making payments. When asked to donate to a specific politician, some people would be hesitant if they knew that there was a possibility their money would not reach the campaign directly.
While a formal business connection between Wood and his husband’s company is not permitted due to the marital conflict of interest, the former employee, among others, have reason to believe Wood is still benefiting from efforts over at Mothership Strategies.
Wood worked for End Citizens United– a PAC created by Mothership founders in 2015– for over four years. This company became a client of Mothership along with other PACs, such as Progressive Turnout Project and Stop Republicans.
End Citizens United, Progressive Turnout Project and Defend The Vote– another Mothership client– have all endorsed Jordan Wood’s campaign. As reported by Drop Site News, Progressive Turnout Project and Defend The Vote sent out emails fundraising for Wood.
On behalf of the Wood for Maine campaign, communications director Kristi Johnston explained that while at End Citizens United, Wood never dealt with any business related to Mothership to establish strict working boundaries between him and Lipsett. Johnston also assured that the run for Congress is completely independent of Mothership Strategies and that Wood has never worked for the firm.
“Our campaign has not hired – and will not hire – them. We use a direct competitor,” said Johnston.
Leadership at the firm expressed a similar sentiment.
“Mothership Strategies is not affiliated with Jordan Wood’s campaign,” said Berlin in a comment. “The campaign is not a client of ours, and it never has been, which FEC filings confirm.”
Glover feels that even non-direct benefits yielded from the firm make it difficult for Wood to campaign using a Maine grassroots mentality.
“It’s very hard to maintain the narrative of reform while linked personally to a person and a firm that signifies, for a lot of people, what is wrong with contemporary campaign politics,” said Glover.
Another issue expressed by the former employee is how funds contribute to massive salaries for Mothership leaders. They added that when Lipsett and Wood left D.C. and bought a multi-million dollar mansion in Maine, the purchase was discussed among staff members making $50,000 to $60,000 per year.
“Everything that these Democratic scammers are doing, Donald Trump does himself,” said the former employee.
When Wood first entered the race, prominent political commentator and former Republican consultant Tim Miller told supporters on X “Democrats should not nominate someone behind left wing ScamPacs for Congress in a district Trump carried.” In light of accusations raised, Wood’s promise to serve the people of Maine could be overshadowed by his possible ties to Mothership Strategies and the alleged benefits his campaign reaped as a result.
