Campaign Finance Scandals

Scandal Categories
Displaying 29 Scandals
Sorted by When News Broke
  • State Sen. Brian Kelsey [R-TN]
    Funneled $66k from his state Senate campaign and $25k from a nonprofit organization to the American Conservative Union, which in turn funded political ads supportive of him and then hid the transaction from the FEC in violation of federal law
    14 Aug 2023
    According to charging documents filed by federal officials
  • Gov. Ron DeSantis [R-FL]
    Illegally transferred $82.5 million from his state political action committee to a super PAC supporting his Presidential bid in violation of a federal campaign finance law that prohibits candidates from spending money that was obtained by people and groups not subject to strict federal requirements
    13 Jun 2023
    According to allegations detailed in a complaint filed by The Campaign Legal Center
  • Herschel Walker [2022 GOP GA Senator Nominee]
    Defrauded a donor who gave him $535,200 to use on his campaign which he diverted to his personal business accounts instead and broke campaign finance laws by not disclosing it in a scheme multiple campaign finance experts called “unprecedented,” “stunning,” and “jaw-dropping”
    03 May 2023
    According to an exclusive investigative report by The Daily Beast
  • Lynda Bennett [2020 NC GOP Rep. Candidate]
    Illegally accepted over $25,000 in campaign contributions from a single family member far exceeding the $5,600 legal limit per person
    30 Jan 2023
    According to charging documents filed by federal prosecutors
  • Massachusetts GOP Chair Jim Lyons
    Broke state law barring PACs from coordinating with local and state political parties by encouraging a Republican state PAC to pay $52,000 for an investigation into the Democratic candidate for governor
    12 Jan 2023
    According to MassGOP party treasurer Pat Crowley and confirmed by The Boston Herald
  • Suspiciously listed 37 campaign expenses on purchases like a hotel stay in Miami and other travel expenses as costing $199.99 -- one cent below the legally binding $200 threshold that required itemized receipts -- on his campaign finance forms
    09 Jan 2023
    According to allegations detailed in a lawsuit filed by nonprofit campaign watchdog The Campaign Legal Center
  • Ben Paris [GOP County Chair]
    Made illegal campaign contributions and filed false financial reports to cover it up to promote an independent "ghost candidate" who got 4,800 votes likely swinging the election to the Republican who won by a narrow 300 votes
    01 Sep 2022
    He was found guilty of a misdemeanor campaign violation and sentenced to a year of probation, 200 hours of community service and $42,000 fine
  • Commissioner John Oxendine [R-GA]
    Spent roughly $100,000 in campaign donations on personal expenses that included a down payment on a home, luxury cars, and childcare expenses
    12 May 2022
    According to a complaint filed by the Georgia Ethics Commission which he settled by agreeing to forfeit $128,000 dollars left in his campaign account without admitting any guilt
  • Rep. Jeff Fortenberry [R-NE]
    Illegally accepted a $30,200 campaign contribution from Nigerian billionaire Gilbert Chagoury through three "straw donors" then lied to federal authorities after they confronted him about it
    19 Oct 2021
    According to charging documents filed by federal authorities
  • Aide Jesse Benton
    Funneled $25,000 of a Russian oligarch's money to the Trump 2016 campaign in exchange for a ticket and access to Trump during a Republican National Committee event
    20 Sep 2021
    According to charging documents filed by federal prosecutors
  • Matt Gaetz
    Snorted cocaine with a prostitute he also presumably had sex with inside a hotel room he paid for with campaign funds
    14 May 2021
    According to two eyewitnesses who spoke exclusively with The Daily Beast
  • State Sen. Frank Artiles [R-FL]
    Donated nearly $45,000 to a fake independent candidate who shared the same last name as the Democratic nominee for a state senate race to confuse voters and siphon votes from the incumbent in an election which was won by Republican Ileana Garcia by just 32 votes
    19 Mar 2021
    According to charging documents filed by local officials
  • State Sen. Sam McCann [R-IL]
    Spent over $200,000 in campaign funds on personal expenses including his mortgage and cars
    03 Feb 2021
    According to charging documents filed by federal prosecutors
  • Funneled hundreds of millions of dollars through two shell companies connected to his son-in-law to hide its spending during the 2020 Presidential campaign
    18 Dec 2020
    According to a formal FEC complaint filed by the nonpartisan Campaign Legal Center
  • State Sen. Brent Waltz [R-IN]
    Illegally funneled $40,500 in campaign contributions from an Indiana casino through "straw donors" who were reimbursed through faked consulting fees
    29 Sep 2020
    He pled guilty and was sentenced to 10 months in prison
  • Gov. Eric Greitens [R-MO]
    Violated campaign finance law by coordinating with a Super PAC that ran political attack ads against his opponents without reporting the ads as a gift as required by state and federal law and was fined $178,000 by The Missouri Ethics Commission
    13 Feb 2020
    According to the results of a state ethics investigation which found he violated the law
  • State Sen. Jeremy Hutchinson [R-AR]
    Illegally spent over $100,000 in campaign contributions on personal expenses and then tried to cover it up by filing numerous false tax returns
    25 Jun 2019
    He pleaded guilty to tax and wire fraud and was sentenced to 46 months in prison and ordered to pay over $350,000 in fines
  • Illegally paid adult film star Stormy Daniels $130,000 in hush money to keep her from going public about an extramarital affair they had by directing his personal lawyer Michael Cohen to pay her off and agreeing to reimburse him in monthly installments one month before the 2016 election in violation of campaign-finance laws
    09 Nov 2018
    According to an exclusive report by The Wall Street Journal
  • State Sen. John Courson [R-SC]
    Stole $133k from his election campaign by routing funds through a political consulting firm that in turn paid him over a series of transactions
    04 Jun 2018
    According to charging documents filed by federal officials
  • Violated campaign-finance laws by paying former Playboy Playmate of the Year Karen McDougal $150,000 in hush money to keep her from going public about an extramarital affair they had by orchestrating a convoluted payment scheme involving his lawyer Michael Cohen and the tabloid National Enquirer a week and a half before the 2016 election
    04 Nov 2016
    According to an exclusive report by The Wall Street Journal
  • Aide Jesse Benton
    Illegally paid Iowa state senator Kent Sorenson $73,000 to switch his 2016 Presidential candidate endorsement from Michelle Bachmann to Ron Paul and then falsified campaign reports to cover it up
    05 May 2016
    According to a federal jury who convicted him
  • Rep. Duncan Hunter [R-CA]
    Stole hundreds of thousands of dollars from his campaign to spend on everyday personal expenses like family vacations, private school tuition and jewelry so he could live the opulent lifestyle his taxpayer funded salary didn't provide
    Apr 2016
    He pleaded guilty to using campaign funds for private use and was sentenced to eleven months in prison, but was pardoned by Donald Trump before his sentence began
  • Rep. Frank Guinta [R-NH]
    Lied about the origins of a $355,000 loan to his 2010 congressional campaign that his parents gave him by falsely asserting the money came from earnings he made working in the private sector
    02 Jun 2015
    He signed an agreement with the FEC where he agreed to repay the donation amount in addition to a $15,000 fine
  • Lisa Wilson-Foley [2012 CT GOP Rep. Candidate]
    Illegally accepted more than $30k from her husband who used four "straw donors" to conceal that the money came from him
    24 Mar 2015
    According to charging documents filed by federal officials
  • Lisa Wilson-Foley [2012 CT GOP Rep. Candidate]
    Fraudulently concealed a $500k campaign contribution from her husband by falsely reporting the money came from her personal accounts and illegally used her husband's business resources to help her campaign by having his employees moonlight as unofficial campaign staff
    24 Mar 2015
    According to charging documents filed by federal officials
  • Lisa Wilson-Foley [2012 CT GOP Rep. Candidate]
    Illegally paid a convicted felon $35,000 under the table to work on her 2012 Republican congressional campaign instead of using campaign funds as required by law
    24 Mar 2015
    According to charging documents filed by federal prosecutors
  • Rep. Aaron Schock [R-IL]
    Received nearly $50,000 he was not entitled to after he lied about driving 90,000 more miles than he actually did in reimbursement forms he filed with the government and his campaign
    17 Mar 2015
    According to a report by Politico
  • Ben Suarez [Conservative Businessman]
    Illegally used his family, employees, and friends as "straw donors" to donate $100k each to two political candidates and later interfered with the criminal case by attempting to influence a government witness
    14 Nov 2014
    According to charging documents filed by federal prosecutors
  • Rep. Rick Renzi [R-AZ]
    Funneled $400k in insurance premiums from a company he owned to his congressional campaign then later transferred ownership of the company to his wife
    22 Feb 2008
    According to charging documents filed by federal officials