Five-second answer

Claim we investigated

Individual donors other than Brian Heywood supply most of the money backing I-638, while a foundation and unions supply most of the money opposing it.

True. Individuals other than Heywood gave 52% of Yes committee money; Inatai and unions gave 63% of No's. Itemized Public Disclosure Commission contribution and expenditure filings for both main committees, the PDC's committee registrations and enforcement records, IRS filings summarized by ProPublica, and the Secretary of State's signature counts all point the same way.

Quote or cite this fact-check

FactHub rates the claim “Individual donors other than Brian Heywood supply most of the money backing I-638, while a foundation and unions supply most of the money opposing it” True (moderate confidence): Individuals other than Heywood gave 52% of Yes committee money; Inatai and unions gave 63% of No's. Reviewed October 23, 2026. https://facthub.org/n/article/wa-i638-campaign-funding/5

One-minute summary

What the evidence establishes

  • Established. Individuals gave 80.8% of Let's Go Washington's $7.82 million in 2025-26: 1,121 named individual contributors plus 395 reports of unitemized small gifts. Individuals other than Brian Heywood gave 51.7%.
  • Established. Brian Heywood is the Yes committee's largest donor, at $2.28 million (29.1%; 42.7% in 2025 and 16.4% in 2026).
  • Established. Organizations gave 82.0% of No Hate in WA State's $4.44 million: the Inatai Foundation, a 501(c)(4) with $2.37 billion in assets, gave 22.5%, unions 40.1% and advocacy groups 13.1%. No individual gave it more than $50,000.
  • Established. In 2026, No Hate in WA State's reports tie about $1.08 million of spending to I-638, against $0.19 million for Let's Go Washington, whose I-638 spending was mostly paid signature gathering in 2025 ($1.17 million).
  • Context. The Secretary of State counted 444,434 I-638 signatures; its 3% sample accepted 85.8%, which implies about 381,000 valid signatures by our estimate, against 308,911 required.
  • Context. On September 23, 2026, the PDC dismissed a complaint that Let's Go Washington failed to report in-kind help from a commentator, calling it a close case and issuing a reminder. A separate complaint against No Hate in WA State over its expenditure reporting was still under review.
  • Not shown. Campaign filings cannot show motive: whether the measure was put forward 'to distract from rising costs, foster hate, and divide our communities,' as the No pamphlet says, is not something these records can settle.
Important context: Initiative IL26-638 on the November 3, 2026 ballot would bar students it defines as biologically male from female-only school sports and require a health care provider to verify the sex of students entering them. Neither main campaign committee works on I-638 alone: Let's Go Washington also backs IL26-001 (parental rights) and IP26-645 (income-tax repeal), and No Hate in WA State also opposes IL26-001. Contributions are not earmarked by measure, so this article reports each committee's money as a whole and, separately, the spending each committee's own reports tie to I-638. Figures are a snapshot of PDC filings as of October 23, 2026 (itemized expenditures through October 12), and will change before the election.

The evidence

The conclusion rests on the combined record. Expand each item to see its role and limitations.

Independence note: This check uses 7 methods across 4 institutions and 1 country or international grouping.
Evidence map
Method Institution / country Year(s) What it shows Key limitation Primary links
Itemized contributions reported to the state Public Disclosure Commission, grouped by donor, donor type and election year Washington Public Disclosure Commission United States 2025, 2026 Three committees are registered with the PDC in support of I-638; Let's Go Washington holds 99.6% of their 2026 receipts. Over the 2025 and 2026 election years it raised $7,822,216, of which individuals gave $6,323,456 (80.8%) and organizations $1,498,760 (19.2%). It reported 1,121 named individual contributors and 395 unitemized small-gift entries. Brian Heywood gave $2,280,049 (29.1%): $1,622,913 in 2025 (42.7% of that year's receipts) and $657,136 in 2026 (16.4%). Individuals other than Heywood gave 51.7%. The next-largest donors were Steve Gordon ($902,000; $1.18 million with three other Gordons), Kelley DevCom LLC ($450,000), Washington Rising Inc of Franklin, Tennessee ($300,000) and Kemper Holdings LLC ($250,000). No union gave anything. A snapshot of filings through October 23, 2026. Let's Go Washington's money also funds IL26-001 and IP26-645, and contributions are not earmarked by measure. Individuals are counted by distinct reported name, and each unitemized report can cover many small donors. Heywood's earlier loans are excluded because they are not contributions. FactHub FactHub FactHub FactHub
Itemized contributions reported to the state Public Disclosure Commission, grouped by donor and donor type Washington Public Disclosure Commission United States 2025, 2026 No Hate in WA State holds 85.3% of the 2026 receipts of the 11 committees registered against I-638. It raised $4,436,913 over 2025-26, of which organizations gave $3,638,046 (82.0%) and individuals $798,867 (18.0%), from 731 named individuals and 145 unitemized entries; the largest individual total was $50,000. Its largest donors were the Inatai Foundation ($1,000,000, 22.5%, given August 13 to October 16, 2026), SEIU 775's ballot fund ($750,500), the Washington Education Association ($430,228), the ACLU of Washington ($332,103) and the National Education Association ($250,000, Washington, D.C.); together the top five gave 62.3%. By type, unions gave $1.78 million (40.1%), foundations $1.09 million (24.6%), and civil-liberties, LGBTQ and reproductive-rights groups $0.58 million (13.1%), including Gender Justice League ($125,341), the Human Rights Campaign ($22,845) and Planned Parenthood Alliance Advocates ($14,286). Donors with Washington addresses gave 86.8%, about the same as Let's Go Washington's 91.1%. A snapshot: No Hate in WA State took in $1.4 million from Inatai and SEIU 775 between September 22 and October 21 alone, and $95,000 more from two other organizations on October 22-23. Its money also funds opposition to IL26-001. Donor types are our classification of each organization by name, and union and foundation money ultimately comes from members and endowments. FactHub FactHub FactHub FactHub FactHub
Itemized expenditures reported to the PDC, assigned to I-638 by the measure numbers named in each purpose description Washington Public Disclosure Commission United States 2025, 2026 Let's Go Washington's reports tie $1.17 million of its 2025 spending to I-638, nearly all of it signature-gathering vendor costs shared with IL26-001, and $0.19 million of its 2026 spending (surveys, get-out-the-vote and event costs shared with other measures). Most of its 2026 spending named IP26-645. No Hate in WA State's reports tie $0.12 million of its 2025 spending and $1.08 million of its 2026 spending to I-638, including digital video advertising bought in October and split evenly with IL26-001. Over both years the totals are similar, $1.36 million for Yes and $1.20 million for No, but in 2026 the No side has spent roughly five times as much on I-638. Relies on each committee's own descriptions; shared items are split equally across the measures they name. Let's Go Washington's spending that names no measure ($2.48 million, mostly staff, legal and consulting) is left out; prorating it would raise its I-638 total from $1.36 million to $1.99 million. Itemized expenditures in the data run through October 12, 2026, when No Hate in WA State still had about $1.9 million unspent. FactHub
The donor's own published description and its IRS filings as summarized by ProPublica Inatai Foundation, ProPublica United States 2024, 2026 The Inatai Foundation says it 'was formed from the proceeds of the sale of Group Health Cooperative to Kaiser Permanente' and describes itself as a 501(c)(4) philanthropy working for 'equity and racial justice across Washington state and beyond.' ProPublica's summary of its IRS filings (EIN 30-0889914) shows it designated as a 501(c)(4) with total assets of $2,365,213,466 for the fiscal year ending December 2024. Its $1 million to No Hate in WA State is the largest single gift to either main I-638 committee in 2026. The PDC record names 'Inatai Foundation' at the same Seattle address as the 501(c)(4) and gives no tax ID; we match them by name and address. A separate charity, Inatai Community Fund, is a 501(c)(3). A 501(c)(4) need not disclose its own donors. Inatai Foundation ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer
Secretary of State signature-verification statistics Washington Secretary of State United States 2026 The Secretary of State's signature statistics (updated July 22, 2026) list 444,434 signatures submitted for IL26-638. Its 3% random sample of 13,333 accepted 11,442 (85.8%), which implies roughly 381,000 valid signatures, against 308,911 required for an initiative. The measure was certified. Signatures show support for putting the measure on the ballot, not a vote. Most were gathered by paid circulators: Let's Go Washington's 2025 I-638 spending was nearly all signature-gathering costs. Our valid-signature estimate multiplies the total by the sample acceptance rate and ignores the Secretary of State's adjustment for duplicates. Washington Secretary of State
PDC enforcement case records Washington Public Disclosure Commission United States 2026 Case 192919, a May 12, 2026 complaint on behalf of Washingtonians for Ethical Government alleging that Let's Go Washington failed to report in-kind help from commentator Brandi Kruse, was closed on September 23, 2026, as 'Case Closed with Reminder.' PDC staff found no evidence that the committee bought her services and dismissed the case, but called it 'a close case.' A separate August 2026 case over missing sponsor identification on Let's Go Washington ads ended with a reminder. On the No side, a July 2026 sponsor-identification complaint against No Hate in WA State also ended with a reminder, and an August 27, 2026 complaint about its expenditure reporting was still under assessment. Case records show how the PDC disposed of a complaint, not whether any later complaint will be filed. 'Assessment of Facts' means staff are reviewing a complaint; it is not a finding. Washington Public Disclosure Commission Washington Public Disclosure Commission
The official voters' pamphlet statement, quoted verbatim Washington Secretary of State United States 2026 Under the heading 'Vote No Because It's the Most Extreme Proposal of Its Kind In The U.S,' the No argument says: 'This initiative is bankrolled by an ultra-conservative mega-donor to distract from rising costs, foster hate, and divide our communities.' It does not name the donor; the reference is to Brian Heywood and his committee. The pamphlet statement is advocacy written by the No committee and printed unedited. FactHub
1. PDC filings: individuals supply most Yes money; Heywood is the largest donor Itemized contributions reported to the state Public Disclosure Commission, grouped by donor, donor type and election year

Three committees are registered with the PDC in support of I-638; Let's Go Washington holds 99.6% of their 2026 receipts. Over the 2025 and 2026 election years it raised $7,822,216, of which individuals gave $6,323,456 (80.8%) and organizations $1,498,760 (19.2%). It reported 1,121 named individual contributors and 395 unitemized small-gift entries. Brian Heywood gave $2,280,049 (29.1%): $1,622,913 in 2025 (42.7% of that year's receipts) and $657,136 in 2026 (16.4%). Individuals other than Heywood gave 51.7%. The next-largest donors were Steve Gordon ($902,000; $1.18 million with three other Gordons), Kelley DevCom LLC ($450,000), Washington Rising Inc of Franklin, Tennessee ($300,000) and Kemper Holdings LLC ($250,000). No union gave anything.

Limit: A snapshot of filings through October 23, 2026. Let's Go Washington's money also funds IL26-001 and IP26-645, and contributions are not earmarked by measure. Individuals are counted by distinct reported name, and each unitemized report can cover many small donors. Heywood's earlier loans are excluded because they are not contributions.

Verify: Money from individuals versus organizations (saved analysis) Money raised by each main committee, by donor group (saved analysis) How concentrated each side's money is (saved analysis) All committees registered on I-638 (saved analysis)

Heywood is the largest Yes donor; unions and a foundation lead NoContributions to Let's Go Washington (the I-638 Yes committee, which also backs I-001 and I-645) and No Hate in WA State (the No committee, which also opposes I-001), 2025 and 2026 election years, by donor group, as reported to the Washington Public Disclosure Commission through October 23, 2026.{"width":960,"height":540,"plot":{"left":90,"top":110,"right":926,"bottom":482},"yDomain":[0,8000000],"series":[{"name":"Brian Heywood","color":"#176b87"},{"name":"Other individuals","color":"#b6542c"},{"name":"Labor unions","color":"#684b9b"},{"name":"Foundations and philanthropies","color":"#2f7d4a"},{"name":"Civil-liberties, LGBTQ and reproductive-rights groups","color":"#9a6b16"},{"name":"Businesses and other organizations","color":"#54606b"},{"name":"Small unitemized gifts","color":"#4b7bd8"}],"points":[{"series":0,"x":299,"y":375.98,"xLabel":"Let\u0027s Go Washington (Yes; also backs I-001 and I-645)","yLabel":"$2,280,049"},{"series":1,"x":299,"y":198.54,"xLabel":"Let\u0027s Go Washington (Yes; also backs I-001 and I-645)","yLabel":"$3,815,958"},{"series":2,"x":299,"y":198.54,"xLabel":"Let\u0027s Go Washington (Yes; also backs I-001 and I-645)","yLabel":"$0"},{"series":3,"x":299,"y":198.3,"xLabel":"Let\u0027s Go Washington (Yes; also backs I-001 and I-645)","yLabel":"$5,000"},{"series":4,"x":299,"y":198.3,"xLabel":"Let\u0027s Go Washington (Yes; also backs I-001 and I-645)","yLabel":"$0"},{"series":5,"x":299,"y":128.91,"xLabel":"Let\u0027s Go Washington (Yes; also backs I-001 and I-645)","yLabel":"$1,492,308"},{"series":6,"x":299,"y":118.27,"xLabel":"Let\u0027s Go Washington (Yes; also backs I-001 and I-645)","yLabel":"$228,901"},{"series":0,"x":717,"y":482,"xLabel":"No Hate in WA State (No; also opposes I-001)","yLabel":"$0"},{"series":1,"x":717,"y":451.02,"xLabel":"No Hate in WA State (No; also opposes I-001)","yLabel":"$666,233"},{"series":2,"x":717,"y":368.24,"xLabel":"No Hate in WA State (No; also opposes I-001)","yLabel":"$1,780,228"},{"series":3,"x":717,"y":317.55,"xLabel":"No Hate in WA State (No; also opposes I-001)","yLabel":"$1,090,000"},{"series":4,"x":717,"y":290.61,"xLabel":"No Hate in WA State (No; also opposes I-001)","yLabel":"$579,470"},{"series":5,"x":717,"y":281.87,"xLabel":"No Hate in WA State (No; also opposes I-001)","yLabel":"$188,009"},{"series":6,"x":717,"y":275.68,"xLabel":"No Hate in WA State (No; also opposes I-001)","yLabel":"$132,973"}]}Heywood is the largest Yes donor; unions and a foundation lead No$0$2,000,000$4,000,000$6,000,000$8,000,000Let's Go Washington (Yes; also backs I-001 and I-645)No Hate in WA State (No; also opposes I-001)CommitteeBrian HeywoodOther individualsLabor unionsFoundations and philanthropiesCivil-liberties, LGBTQ and reproductive-rights groupsBusinesses and other organizationsSmall unitemized giftsFactHub · Raised, 2025-26 election years (US dollars)
Contributions in the 2025 and 2026 election years, through October 23, 2026. Individuals, Heywood and others, gave most of Let's Go Washington's money; unions (40%) and foundations (25%) led No Hate in WA State's. Both committees also work on another measure or two. View source chart
2. PDC filings: organizations supply 82% of No money, led by one foundation and unions Itemized contributions reported to the state Public Disclosure Commission, grouped by donor and donor type

No Hate in WA State holds 85.3% of the 2026 receipts of the 11 committees registered against I-638. It raised $4,436,913 over 2025-26, of which organizations gave $3,638,046 (82.0%) and individuals $798,867 (18.0%), from 731 named individuals and 145 unitemized entries; the largest individual total was $50,000. Its largest donors were the Inatai Foundation ($1,000,000, 22.5%, given August 13 to October 16, 2026), SEIU 775's ballot fund ($750,500), the Washington Education Association ($430,228), the ACLU of Washington ($332,103) and the National Education Association ($250,000, Washington, D.C.); together the top five gave 62.3%. By type, unions gave $1.78 million (40.1%), foundations $1.09 million (24.6%), and civil-liberties, LGBTQ and reproductive-rights groups $0.58 million (13.1%), including Gender Justice League ($125,341), the Human Rights Campaign ($22,845) and Planned Parenthood Alliance Advocates ($14,286). Donors with Washington addresses gave 86.8%, about the same as Let's Go Washington's 91.1%.

Limit: A snapshot: No Hate in WA State took in $1.4 million from Inatai and SEIU 775 between September 22 and October 21 alone, and $95,000 more from two other organizations on October 22-23. Its money also funds opposition to IL26-001. Donor types are our classification of each organization by name, and union and foundation money ultimately comes from members and endowments.

Verify: Money from individuals versus organizations (saved analysis) Money raised by each main committee, by donor group (saved analysis) How concentrated each side's money is (saved analysis) In-state and out-of-state money (saved analysis) All committees registered on I-638 (saved analysis)

3. The committees' own reports: Yes spent on I-638 in 2025, No is spending in 2026 Itemized expenditures reported to the PDC, assigned to I-638 by the measure numbers named in each purpose description

Let's Go Washington's reports tie $1.17 million of its 2025 spending to I-638, nearly all of it signature-gathering vendor costs shared with IL26-001, and $0.19 million of its 2026 spending (surveys, get-out-the-vote and event costs shared with other measures). Most of its 2026 spending named IP26-645. No Hate in WA State's reports tie $0.12 million of its 2025 spending and $1.08 million of its 2026 spending to I-638, including digital video advertising bought in October and split evenly with IL26-001. Over both years the totals are similar, $1.36 million for Yes and $1.20 million for No, but in 2026 the No side has spent roughly five times as much on I-638.

Limit: Relies on each committee's own descriptions; shared items are split equally across the measures they name. Let's Go Washington's spending that names no measure ($2.48 million, mostly staff, legal and consulting) is left out; prorating it would raise its I-638 total from $1.36 million to $1.99 million. Itemized expenditures in the data run through October 12, 2026, when No Hate in WA State still had about $1.9 million unspent.

Verify: Spending each committee's reports tie to I-638, by year (saved analysis)

Yes spent on I-638 signatures in 2025; No outspends Yes in 2026Spending that each main I-638 committee's own expenditure reports tie to I-638, by election year, as reported to the Washington Public Disclosure Commission (itemized expenditures through October 12, 2026, in data downloaded October 23). Shared items are split equally across the measures they name.{"width":960,"height":540,"plot":{"left":90,"top":70,"right":926,"bottom":482},"yDomain":[0,1500000],"series":[{"name":"Yes","color":"#176b87"},{"name":"No","color":"#b6542c"}],"points":[{"series":0,"x":159.67,"y":161.46,"xLabel":"Yes: 2025","yLabel":"$1,167,016"},{"series":0,"x":299,"y":429.72,"xLabel":"Yes: 2026","yLabel":"$190,328"},{"series":0,"x":438.33,"y":109.18,"xLabel":"Yes: 2025-26 total","yLabel":"$1,357,345"},{"series":1,"x":577.67,"y":449,"xLabel":"No: 2025","yLabel":"$120,141"},{"series":1,"x":717,"y":186.67,"xLabel":"No: 2026","yLabel":"$1,075,221"},{"series":1,"x":856.33,"y":153.67,"xLabel":"No: 2025-26 total","yLabel":"$1,195,362"}]}Yes spent on I-638 signatures in 2025; No outspends Yes in 2026$0$500,000$1,000,000$1,500,000Yes: 2025Yes: 2026Yes: 2025-26 totalNo: 2025No: 2026No: 2025-26 totalSide and election yearYesNoFactHub · Spending tied to I-638 (US dollars)
Spending each committee's own reports tie to I-638. Let's Go Washington's went mostly to the 2025 signature drive; in 2026 the No side has spent about five times as much on I-638. View source chart
4. The largest No donor is a $2.4 billion 501(c)(4) philanthropy The donor's own published description and its IRS filings as summarized by ProPublica

The Inatai Foundation says it 'was formed from the proceeds of the sale of Group Health Cooperative to Kaiser Permanente' and describes itself as a 501(c)(4) philanthropy working for 'equity and racial justice across Washington state and beyond.' ProPublica's summary of its IRS filings (EIN 30-0889914) shows it designated as a 501(c)(4) with total assets of $2,365,213,466 for the fiscal year ending December 2024. Its $1 million to No Hate in WA State is the largest single gift to either main I-638 committee in 2026.

Limit: The PDC record names 'Inatai Foundation' at the same Seattle address as the 501(c)(4) and gives no tax ID; we match them by name and address. A separate charity, Inatai Community Fund, is a 501(c)(3). A 501(c)(4) need not disclose its own donors.

Verify: About Us - Inatai Foundation Inatai Foundation (EIN 30-0889914)

5. The measure qualified with about 381,000 valid signatures, by our estimate Secretary of State signature-verification statistics

The Secretary of State's signature statistics (updated July 22, 2026) list 444,434 signatures submitted for IL26-638. Its 3% random sample of 13,333 accepted 11,442 (85.8%), which implies roughly 381,000 valid signatures, against 308,911 required for an initiative. The measure was certified.

Limit: Signatures show support for putting the measure on the ballot, not a vote. Most were gathered by paid circulators: Let's Go Washington's 2025 I-638 spending was nearly all signature-gathering costs. Our valid-signature estimate multiplies the total by the sample acceptance rate and ignores the Secretary of State's adjustment for duplicates.

Verify: Submitted Signature Statistics (updated July 22, 2026)

6. PDC enforcement: complaint against Let's Go Washington dismissed; one against No Hate in WA State still open PDC enforcement case records

Case 192919, a May 12, 2026 complaint on behalf of Washingtonians for Ethical Government alleging that Let's Go Washington failed to report in-kind help from commentator Brandi Kruse, was closed on September 23, 2026, as 'Case Closed with Reminder.' PDC staff found no evidence that the committee bought her services and dismissed the case, but called it 'a close case.' A separate August 2026 case over missing sponsor identification on Let's Go Washington ads ended with a reminder. On the No side, a July 2026 sponsor-identification complaint against No Hate in WA State also ended with a reminder, and an August 27, 2026 complaint about its expenditure reporting was still under assessment.

Limit: Case records show how the PDC disposed of a complaint, not whether any later complaint will be filed. 'Assessment of Facts' means staff are reviewing a complaint; it is not a finding.

Verify: PDC Enforcement Cases (data.wa.gov a4ma-dq6s): cases 192919, 193927, 194110 and 195108 Enforcement case 192919: Let's Go Washington (Sponsored by Brian Heywood)

7. What the No campaign's pamphlet statement says The official voters' pamphlet statement, quoted verbatim

Under the heading 'Vote No Because It's the Most Extreme Proposal of Its Kind In The U.S,' the No argument says: 'This initiative is bankrolled by an ultra-conservative mega-donor to distract from rising costs, foster hate, and divide our communities.' It does not name the donor; the reference is to Brian Heywood and his committee.

Limit: The pamphlet statement is advocacy written by the No committee and printed unedited.

Verify: Initiative 638: the campaigns' claims in their own words (dataset)

This initiative is bankrolled by an ultra-conservative mega-donor to distract from rising costs, foster hate, and divide our communities.

Committee for the argument against Initiative IL26-638 (Justin Gill, APRN, and five co-authors), Authors of the official voters' pamphlet argument against IL26-638 2026 Washington voters' pamphlet, Initiative Measure IL26-638, p. 22, argument against: "Vote No Because It's the Most Extreme Proposal of Its Kind In The U.S" · · Assertion

Context: Refers to the Yes campaign's funding by Let's Go Washington and its founder; the stated motives are the No campaign's characterization.

Source: Washington Secretary of State, 2026 General Election voters' pamphlet (statewide edition) · View in the dataset

Common questions

“This initiative is bankrolled by an ultra-conservative mega-donor to distract from rising costs, foster hate, and divide our communities.”

Our rating: Misleading

The checkable part, that one donor bankrolls the measure, leaves a wrong impression. Brian Heywood sponsors the Yes committee and is its largest donor, but he gave $2.28 million, 29% of its 2025-26 money and 16% in 2026. Individuals gave about 81% of the committee's $7.82 million ($6.32 million), from 1,121 named individuals plus 395 unitemized small-gift entries, so most of the money came from people other than Heywood. The measure also qualified with 444,434 signatures submitted, about 381,000 valid by our estimate against 308,911 required, though most were collected by paid circulators and signatures show support for a ballot vote, not for the measure. By contrast, organizations gave 82% of the No committee's money, and its five largest donors gave 62%. 'Ultra-conservative' is a characterization, not a checkable fact, and the pamphlet gives no basis for it; we do not rate it. The rest of the sentence, that the measure exists 'to distract from rising costs, foster hate, and divide our communities,' is a claim about motive that campaign filings cannot test.

Related claim: Most No on 645 money comes from unions paid through the state budget. — On I-645, FactHub rates True (high confidence) that most No on 645 money comes from unions paid through the state budget; Heywood gave 16% of Let's Go Washington's 2026 money, which funds three measures.

“Who bankrolls the No campaign?”

Short answer: A foundation and unions

Organizations gave 82.0% of No Hate in WA State's $4.44 million. The largest single donor is the Inatai Foundation, a Seattle 501(c)(4) with $2.37 billion in assets, at $1.0 million (23%). Unions gave 40%, led by SEIU 775 ($750,500), the Washington Education Association ($430,228) and the National Education Association ($250,000, from outside Washington). The ACLU of Washington and LGBTQ and reproductive-rights groups gave 13%. Individuals gave 18%, about 731 named people plus small unitemized gifts, and none gave more than $50,000. The No campaign's money is concentrated in institutions, not wealthy individuals.

“Heywood's money lets the Yes side outspend the opposition.”

Short answer: Not in 2026

Over both years the two committees' spending tied to I-638 is similar ($1.36 million Yes, $1.20 million No). But the Yes money went mostly to the 2025 signature drive. In the 2026 campaign, No Hate in WA State's reports tie about $1.08 million to I-638 against $0.19 million for Let's Go Washington, and as of its latest itemized expenditures (October 12) the No committee had about $1.9 million more raised but unspent.

“Out-of-state money is paying for this campaign.”

Short answer: Mostly not, on either side

Donors with Washington addresses gave 91.1% of Let's Go Washington's money and 86.8% of No Hate in WA State's. Out-of-state addresses gave 6.0% and 10.2%; the largest were Washington Rising Inc of Tennessee ($300,000) on the Yes side and the National Education Association ($250,000) on the No side. An address does not show where an organization's own money comes from.

“Let's Go Washington is under investigation for breaking campaign finance law.”

Short answer: Dismissed September 23

A September 24, 2026 op-ed in The Urbanist said Let's Go Washington was 'under formal investigation by the PDC.' The PDC had closed that case the day before: staff found no evidence the committee bought a commentator's services and dismissed the complaint, while calling it a close case and reminding the committee to report donated professional services. Both sides have had minor sponsor-identification complaints closed with reminders, and a complaint about No Hate in WA State's expenditure reporting remains under assessment.

“The opposition is funded by unions and national LGBTQ groups.”

Short answer: Unions yes; national groups little

Unions are the largest group of No donors, at 40.1%, led by SEIU 775, the Washington Education Association and the National Education Association. National LGBTQ and reproductive-rights organizations gave little: the Human Rights Campaign $22,845 and Planned Parenthood Alliance Advocates $14,286. The larger advocacy gifts came from Washington groups, the ACLU of Washington ($332,103) and Gender Justice League ($125,341), and the largest single gift came from the Inatai Foundation.

Conclusion

The two sides are funded in opposite ways. The Yes campaign is, in practice, one committee: Let's Go Washington held $4.02 million of the $4.03 million (99.6%) raised in 2026 by the three committees registered in support of I-638. Over the 2025 and 2026 election years it raised $7.82 million, and 80.8% of that came from individuals: 1,121 named individual contributors plus 395 reports of unitemized small gifts. Brian Heywood, who founded the committee and whose name is in its registered title, is by far its largest donor, at $2.28 million (29.1%; 42.7% in 2025, the year of the I-638 signature drive, and 16.4% in 2026). Individuals other than Heywood gave 51.7%, a slim majority: had about $130,000 of their money come from organizations instead, it would fall below half. The No campaign's money comes mainly from institutions. No Hate in WA State, which holds 85% of the 2026 money raised by committees opposing I-638, got 82.0% of its $4.44 million from organizations. The Inatai Foundation, a Seattle 501(c)(4) formed from the proceeds of the sale of Group Health Cooperative to Kaiser Permanente, with $2.37 billion in assets at the end of 2024, gave $1.0 million (22.5%), all between August and October 2026. Unions gave 40.1%, led by SEIU 775 ($750,500), the Washington Education Association ($430,228) and the National Education Association ($250,000, from Washington, D.C.); the ACLU of Washington, LGBTQ and reproductive-rights groups gave 13.1%. Individuals gave 18.0%, and no individual gave more than $50,000. Spending tells a different story from money raised. Let's Go Washington's own expenditure reports tie about $1.17 million of its 2025 spending to I-638, nearly all of it paid signature gathering, but only $0.19 million in 2026. No Hate in WA State's reports tie $1.08 million of 2026 spending to I-638, and as of its latest itemized expenditures (October 12) it had about $1.9 million raised but not yet spent, so in the general-election campaign so far the No side has outspent the Yes side on I-638 by roughly five to one. The No pamphlet's sentence, rated separately below, is Misleading: its one checkable part, that a single donor bankrolls the measure, leaves out that 71% of the Yes committee's money came from other donors, most of them individuals, and that the No committee depends more on a few large institutional donors than the Yes committee depends on Heywood. The Secretary of State's count also shows the measure qualified with 444,434 signatures submitted, about 381,000 of them valid by our estimate, though most were gathered by paid circulators. We rate our claim True with moderate confidence: the figures come straight from PDC filings, but the Yes committee's money also funds two other measures and its individual majority is narrow. What remains open is how much more each side will raise and spend in the last two weeks.

How we checked

  1. Defined the question: who pays for each side of I-638, individuals or organizations, and how concentrated that money is; and, separately, the No pamphlet's sentence about a 'mega-donor', quoted verbatim.
  2. Listed every committee registered with the PDC for or against I-638 in 2026, then downloaded every itemized contribution and expenditure of the two main committees for the 2025 and 2026 election years from the PDC's open data on October 23, 2026 (receipts through October 23; itemized expenditures through October 12).
  3. Classified donors by PDC contributor category, by type and by the state in their reported address; counted distinct named individual contributors; and computed largest-donor and top-five shares and Brian Heywood's share by year.
  4. Assigned spending to I-638 from the measure numbers in each expenditure's own description, splitting shared items equally, and reported spending that names no measure separately.
  5. Checked the PDC's enforcement records for both committees, the largest No donor's own description and its IRS filings via ProPublica, and the Secretary of State's signature statistics; recorded the limits of each source. The build scripts and tables are in the FactHub dataset.

Editorial note: Scope: this article checks who funds each side of I-638 and how concentrated that money is. It does not rate the measure's merits. Campaign totals are a snapshot of PDC data downloaded October 23, 2026, with receipts through October 23, 2026 and itemized expenditures through October 12, 2026. Both main committees cover more than one measure; we report their whole receipts and, separately, the spending their own reports assign to I-638. Individual donors are counted by distinct contributor name as reported, and organizational money is classified by the immediate donor, so union dues or a foundation's endowment count as organizational. Individuals who gave less than $25,000 are not named in the dataset. A financial interest or a large gift is not wrongdoing, and lawful advocacy is treated as advocacy. FactHub takes no position on I-638. No external specialist review has been recorded.

Expert-review status

No external specialist review has been recorded.

Funding and conflicts

Funding: No external funding for this piece.

Ownership: Published by the FactHub Research Team.

Conflicts: None known.

Sources

Sources are labeled by kind, with what this fact check takes from each, so readers can check the evidence independently.

  1. FactHub record FactHub. Money from individuals versus organizations (saved analysis)

    Individual and organizational shares, counts of named individual contributors, and the largest individual gifts for both main committees.

    • Individuals gave 80.8% of Let's Go Washington's $7.82 million (51.7% excluding Heywood), from 1,121 named individuals and 395 unitemized entries; individuals gave 18.0% of No Hate in WA State's $4.44 million, and its largest individual gave $50,000.

  2. FactHub record FactHub. Money raised by each main committee, by donor group (saved analysis)

    PDC contributions to Let's Go Washington and No Hate in WA State, 2025-26, by donor group.

    • Let's Go Washington raised $7.82 million: Heywood 29.1%, other individuals 48.8%, businesses and others 19.1%, no unions. No Hate in WA State raised $4.44 million: unions 40.1%, foundations 24.6%, individuals 15.0%, advocacy groups 13.1%.

  3. FactHub record FactHub. How concentrated each side's money is (saved analysis)

    Largest-donor and top-five shares, and Heywood's share by election year.

    • Heywood gave 29.1% of Let's Go Washington's money (42.7% in 2025, 16.4% in 2026); its top five gave 53.5%. Inatai gave 22.5% of No Hate in WA State's; its top five gave 62.3%.

  4. FactHub record FactHub. Spending each committee's reports tie to I-638, by year (saved analysis)

    Expenditures assigned to I-638 from each committee's own purpose descriptions.

    • Qualifies: Yes: $1.17 million on I-638 in 2025 and $0.19 million in 2026. No: $0.12 million in 2025 and $1.08 million in 2026.

  5. FactHub record FactHub. In-state and out-of-state money (saved analysis)

    Contributions by the state in the donor's reported address.

    • Qualifies: Washington addresses gave 91.1% of Let's Go Washington's money and 86.8% of No Hate in WA State's.

  6. FactHub record FactHub. All committees registered on I-638 (saved analysis)

    Committees for and against I-638 in the PDC's 2026 summary.

    • Three committees support I-638 and 11 oppose it; Let's Go Washington holds 99.6% of the Yes committees' 2026 receipts and No Hate in WA State 85.3% of the No committees'.

  7. FactHub record FactHub. Initiative 638: the campaigns' claims in their own words (dataset)

    Every checkable claim in the 2026 voters' pamphlet arguments on IL26-638, quoted verbatim.

    • Qualifies: The No argument says the initiative 'is bankrolled by an ultra-conservative mega-donor to distract from rising costs, foster hate, and divide our communities.'

  8. Government Washington Secretary of State. Submitted Signature Statistics (updated July 22, 2026)

    The Secretary of State's counts of signatures submitted and sampled for 2026 initiatives.

    Reliability: Published by the state elections division, which verifies petition signatures by random sample under RCW 29A.72.230.

    • Qualifies: IL26-638: 444,434 signatures submitted; the 3% sample of 13,333 accepted 11,442; certified.

      What the source says
      IL26-638 32,078 444,434 Certified 13,333 --- 11,442
      Table of 2026 initiatives, IL26-638 row (sheets, signatures, status, 3% sample, pending, accepted)

    • Qualifies: An initiative needs 308,911 valid signatures.

      What the source says
      The number of signatures required for an initiative is 308,911
      Text above the table
  9. Government Washington Public Disclosure Commission. PDC Enforcement Cases (data.wa.gov a4ma-dq6s): cases 192919, 193927, 194110 and 195108

    The PDC's open-data records of four 2026 complaints against the two main I-638 committees, with status and dates.

    Reliability: Published by the PDC from its own case system. Status labels are the PDC's; 'Assessment of Facts' marks a complaint under staff review.

    • Qualifies: Case 192919 against Let's Go Washington was opened July 6, 2026 and closed September 23, 2026 with a reminder.

      What the source says
      "status":"Case Closed with Reminder","opened":"2026-07-06T00:00:00.000","closed":"2026-09-23T00:00:00.000"
      Record for case 192919

    • Qualifies: A complaint that No Hate in WA State failed to report expenditures accurately, opened August 27, 2026, was still under assessment.

      What the source says
      "case":"195108","respondent":"No Hate in WA State","status":"Assessment of Facts","opened":"2026-08-27T00:00:00.000"
      Record for case 195108
  10. Government Washington Public Disclosure Commission. Enforcement case 192919: Let's Go Washington (Sponsored by Brian Heywood)

    The PDC's written disposition of the 2026 complaint about unreported in-kind contributions from a commentator.

    Reliability: Written by PDC staff. The complaint was filed on behalf of Washingtonians for Ethical Government, a group that has filed several complaints against Let's Go Washington.

    • Qualifies: PDC staff dismissed the complaint, finding no evidence the committee bought the commentator's services, but called it a close case and reminded the committee to report donated professional services.

      What the source says
      However, this is a close case and PDC staff is reminding LGW about the importance of ensuring that any professional services provided to LGW and either paid directly by LGW or paid or donated by another person (including the individual providing the services) to benefit LGW are reported as an expenditure or an in-kind contribution.
      Case description, final paragraph
  11. Advocacy group Inatai Foundation. About Us - Inatai Foundation

    The foundation's own description of what it is, its origin and its mission.

    Reliability: Has a stake in this finding. Self-description by the largest donor to No Hate in WA State.

    • Inatai describes itself as a 501(c)(4) philanthropy working for equity and racial justice in Washington.

      What the source says
      Inatai Foundation is a 501(c)(4) philanthropy seeking to transform the balance of power to ensure equity and racial justice across Washington state and beyond.
      About Us page, opening section

    • Inatai was formed from the proceeds of the sale of Group Health Cooperative to Kaiser Permanente.

      What the source says
      The foundation was formed from the proceeds of the sale of Group Health Cooperative to Kaiser Permanente.
      About Us page, history
  12. News report ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer. Inatai Foundation (EIN 30-0889914)

    ProPublica's summary of the Inatai Foundation's IRS Form 990 filings.

    Reliability: ProPublica republishes IRS filing data; figures are as the organization reported them to the IRS.

    • The IRS classifies the Inatai Foundation (EIN 30-0889914) as a 501(c)(4).

      What the source says
      Designated as a 501(c)(4)
      Organization summary

    • Inatai reported total assets of about $2.37 billion for the fiscal year ending December 2024.

      What the source says
      $2,365,213,466
      Fiscal year ending Dec. 2024, Total Assets
  13. News report The Urbanist. Op-Ed: What MAGA Doesn't Want You to Know About I-645, I-001, and I-638 (September 24, 2026)

    An opinion piece opposing the three Let's Go Washington measures.

    Reliability: Has a stake in this finding. An op-ed in a Seattle nonprofit news site, written to oppose the measures; it is cited here for what it claimed, not as evidence of the investigation's status.

    • Qualifies: The op-ed said, a day after the PDC closed the case, that Let's Go Washington was under formal investigation.

      What the source says
      under formal investigation by the PDC for failing to report more than $1 million in political promotion and advertising for I-638 and I-001
      Paragraph on Heywood and disclosure laws
  14. FactHub dataset Washington I-638 campaign money by side, donor and measure (2025-26)

    • Tables: donors

      Saved analysis individuals-vs-organizations

    • Tables: donors, by-donor-type

      Saved analysis raised-by-side-and-donor-group

    • Tables: donors

      Saved analysis donor-concentration

    • Tables: spending-allocation

      Saved analysis spending-on-i638-by-year

    • Tables: by-location

      Saved analysis raised-by-location

    • Tables: committees

      Saved analysis committees-by-position

  15. FactHub dataset Initiative 638: the campaigns' claims in their own words
    • This initiative is bankrolled by an ultra-conservative mega-donor to distract from rising costs, foster hate, and divide our communities.
      Committee for the argument against Initiative IL26-638 (Justin Gill, APRN, and five co-authors), Authors of the official voters' pamphlet argument against IL26-638, · In the dataset
  16. FactHub chart i638-campaign-money-by-donor-group
  17. FactHub chart i638-spending-by-side-and-year

Update history

  1. First draft. Campaign figures: PDC filings downloaded October 23, 2026, receipts through October 21, 2026.
  2. Version 2: reframed the rated claim around individual versus organizational funding (True, moderate confidence), using a new saved analysis in dataset version 2; re-rated the No pamphlet's mega-donor sentence Misleading instead of Mixed; added who funds the No side, the Inatai Foundation's IRS classification and assets, and the Secretary of State's signature counts; linked the other I-638 fact checks. Campaign figures unchanged.
  3. Updated related links to the final versions of sibling articles. Now cites version 2 of both campaign-money charts, which visualize dataset version 2; the figures are unchanged.
  4. Refreshed every campaign figure from PDC data downloaded the evening of October 23, 2026 (dataset version 3; receipts through October 23, itemized expenditures still through October 12), and cites version 3 of both charts. Yes: $7.82 million raised; Heywood 29.1%; individuals 80.8%, other individuals 51.7%. No: $4.44 million; organizations 82.0%; Inatai 22.5%; unions 40.1%; unspent about $1.9 million. The 2026 spending figures and the roughly five-to-one ratio are unchanged. Claim and ratings unchanged. Updated related links to the final versions of sibling articles.
  5. Updated the link to the girls' sports participation fact check to its latest version, which now rates the No campaign's 'Discourages Girls From Playing Sports' heading Misleading. No other changes.

Cited by

Version details

The exact citing versions, and the version of this article each cites.

  • Article wa-i638-media-coverage-omissions — version 6 (published) cites version 5
  • Article wa-i638-officials-exam-claims — version 3 (published) cites version 5
  • Article wa-i638-exam-claim-persuasion — version 1 (published) cites version 5
  • Article students-disciplined-for-objecting — version 3 (published) cites version 5
  • Briefing wa-i-638 — version 5 (published) cites version 5
  • Briefing wa-i-638 — version 4 (published) cites version 5

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