FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 5, 2026

WASHINGTON, D.C.—NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice has announced the launch of its 501(c)(4) partisan accountability project leading into the 2026 midterm elections: “Communities Over Billionaires: Who We Elect Matters!” 

“The well-being of millions of people hangs on whether the candidates who prevail next month will back policies that promote and defend the common good, or instead continue the corrupt precedent set by giving trillions of dollars to the already-wealthiest people,” said NETWORK Lobby Executive Director Laurie Carafone. 

“Communities Over Billionaires” launched at a virtual town hall on October 1. Through this project, Carafone said, NETWORK Lobby will hold elected leaders in the House and Senate accountable for their votes and actions that have led to higher prices, less affordable healthcare and housing, less safety in neighborhoods, and loss of access to food, among other impacts – all while giving trillions of dollars in tax cuts to the ultra-wealthy. 

“When we organize together, we can change this world. It’s how we have changed this world, and all of you watching are world changers. You organize on our values of faith and provide moral and practical leadership,” said American civil rights activist and political strategist Heather Booth in her remarks at the town hall. “When you speak to people’s real needs … we build the majorities that can change this world.” 

“We need elected officials in Congress who will fight for all of us to get the care we need instead of taking it away to give their donors and cronies yet more tax breaks. This is not how America should be, and we all deserve better. That’s why we are counting on you this fall,” said Laura Packard, founder of Voices of Health Care Action, who offered her personal account of what cuts to affordable health care mean to her as a cancer survivor. 

The “Communities Over Billionaires” project will feature public education handouts on key issues, and side-by-side candidate comparisons for races in the following House districts: PA-7, PA-8, NJ-7, AZ-1, AZ-6, CO-8, NE-2, WI-3, IA-1, IA-2, MI-7; as well as candidate comparisons for Senate races in Ohio, Michigan, Texas, and Iowa.   

The project is focused on locations where there are especially close Congressional races, where NETWORK has strong relationships, or where there are concentrations of Catholic voters.

All work under “Communities Over Billionaires: Who We Elect Matters!” is the work of NETWORK Lobby’s independent political expenditure committee, and these resources must not be used by candidates for office or a candidate’s organization. 

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