A political action committee controlled by Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D., Md.), chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, sent a $10,000 contribution to former Nebraska senator Ben Nelson (D.), who retired from the Senate in 2012 and has no plans to return to politics.
The contribution to the retired senator appears to have been a mistake, as it was likely intended for Florida's Bill Nelson, a Democratic senator who will face a tough reelection battle in 2018.
The other nine recipients of contributions from the committee that day—Sens. Bob Casey (D., Pa.), Joe Donnelly (D., Ind.), Sherrod Brown (D., Ohio), Heidi Heitkamp (D., N.D.), Tammy Baldwin (D., Wisco.), Joe Manchin (D., W.V.), Claire McCaskill (D., Mo.), Jon Tester (D., Mont.), and Debbie Stabenow (D., Mich.)—are all, like Florida's Bill Nelson, facing reelection battles in 2018.
They all, like Nebraska's Ben Nelson, received $10,000 from Van Hollen's PAC.
The Omaha, Nebraska, address that was attached to the donation matches the current address for "Ben Nelson 2012," a still-active campaign committee for the retired senator.
Though the committee remains active, filings show that it has not received contributions in years.
According to the Federal Election Commission, Ben Nelson 2012 has not taken a single contribution since the beginning of 2013. The committee appears to not have even registered the $10,000 that Victory Now PAC sent it last November, as it reported no receipts in a filing covering the date that the money was sent.
Neither the treasurer for Victory Now PAC nor Van Hollen's office responded to questions on the donation to Ben Nelson.
Bill Nelson has yet to receive any money from Victory Now PAC, according to filings.