Union group reports more than $6 million raised to boost Brown

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A coalition of labor groups and wealthy Democratic donors has raised more than $6.2 million to boost Jerry Brown’s gubernatorial campaign.

The coalition, dubbed California Working Families 2010, spent more than $3.9 million from May 23 through June 30. The group spent the money on ads blasting Republican Meg Whitman in three different television spots. The group originally mobilized to defend Brown while Whitman maintains a visible TV presence this summer.

A spokesman for the group, Roger Salazar, said it had raised an additional $1.9 million in July, which came after the deadline for the reports released Monday. That money is not reflected in the $6.2 million reported Monday. The July donations included $750,000 from the California Teachers Assn., $100,000 from Ron Burkle and $50,000 from Los Angeles businessman and philanthropist Eli Broad.

The group’s spending dwarfs Brown’s own campaign outlay. Earlier today, Brown reported that his campaign has spent just $377,000 since Jan. 1.

-- Anthony York in Sacramento