More and more corporate PACs are taking back political donations from Republicans who rejected election results

Other companies and commercial groups such as Boeing Co.

, Lockheed Martin Corp.

, Northrop Grumman Corp.

, the National Association of Real Estate Agents, Cigna Corp.

and JetBlue Airways Corp.

have also taken over corporate PAC donations to GOP objectors. Some of the donations disclosed in documents filed in the House and Senate on Thursday had already been made public, including some by Ford’s PAC.

The latest filings also show that Toyota Motor Body

PAC gave more than $ 85,000 to more than four dozen GOP objectors before announcing the end of those donations last week. The company, whose decision was previously reported by Popular Information, said it made the decision after listening to its stakeholders who were troubled by the donations.

The companies whose PACs resumed donating were not among those that had specifically made a no-donation pledge to the GOP group of lawmakers. These companies, including Amazon.com Inc., Walmart Inc.,

AT&T Inc.,

Nike Inc.

and Mastercard Inc.,

have so far not donated directly to these campaigns, according to FEC documents.

While PAC business money isn’t as important to lawmakers with high national profiles who can raise millions of dollars online, it still counts for most of the base on both sides.

In the 2020 election, more than 100 House lawmakers relied on corporate and industry PACs for 40% or more of their funding, according to a previous analysis by the Wall Street Journal. Of these, 55 were Democrats and 47 Republicans.

Almost 100 of the members who voted against certification of election results and who had comparable 2019 data said they received less money from corporate and industry PACs for their campaigns in the first half of the year. year compared to the first half of 2019.

In statements to the Journal, several of the companies whose PACs gave to the GOP group of lawmakers in the second quarter said such political donations are needed to help them achieve their business goals.

General Motors said its PAC “supports the election of U.S. federal and state candidates from both sides of the aisle who promote sound trade policies, support American workers, and understand the importance of a strong domestic auto industry as we are pursuing an all-electric vehicle future. “GM’s PAC gave at least $ 22,000 to eight of the Republican opponents.

Ford spokeswoman Melissa Miller said the employee-funded PAC, which gave at least $ 6,500 to three of the GOP’s opponents, made its decision after getting advice from its members. The company had said previously his PAC would not rule out donating to the GOP group of objectors.

“Our PAC employee makes bipartite contributions based on a variety of considerations important to clients, our team and our business. They cover areas such as manufacturing, mobility, innovation and commerce, ”she said.

American Airlines spokeswoman Stacy Day said company employee PAC had resumed her donations because of their importance to the company’s success as the airline industry shrank. takes stock of the economic results of the pandemic. The company’s PAC donated $ 2,500 to the campaign of Representative Sam Graves (R., Mo.), who voted against certification of the 2020 presidential results.

“While there is no legislator with whom we agree on every issue, we are committed to working with members on both sides to advance policies that will positively shape the future of our business, members of our team and the communities we serve, ”she said.

UPS spokeswoman Danielle Cassady said the company’s PAC, which is funded by voluntary employee donations and has given at least $ 22,500 to five of the GOP lawmakers’ campaigns, is making a donation to lawmakers who support corporate interests.

“While we don’t agree with every vote every lawmaker we support makes, we do seek to support candidates who are aligned with us on issues that impact UPS as a business,” a- she declared. “Engaging with those with whom we disagree is an essential part of the democratic process and of our responsibility in legislative advocacy as a business. “

Representatives from Tyson Foods, whose PAC gave five lawmakers $ 7,500, and Aflac, whose PAC gave four of the opponents $ 13,500, did not respond to requests for comment.

Write to Chad Day at Chad.Day@wsj.com