Georgia's Republican Party accused of illegally accepting in-kind contributions from True the Vote

[Nevilledog]

Link to tweet

Tweet text:
Kyle Griffin
@kylegriffin1
Two government watchdog groups have filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission accusing the Georgia Republican Party of illegally accepting in-kind contributions from conservative group True the Vote.

Georgia's Republican Party accused of illegally accepting in-kind contributions from an election...
Campaign Legal Center Action and Common Cause Georgia say that the Georgia GOP publicly but unlawfully accepted campaign help from True the Vote.
businessinsider.com
5:00 AM · Apr 1, 2021

https://www.businessinsider.com/georgia-gop-accused-of-campaign-finance-violations-related-to-runoffs-2021-3

Two government watchdog groups have filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission accusing the Georgia Republican Party of illegally accepting in-kind contributions from True the Vote, a nonprofit that engaged in election-related activities around the Georgia Senate runoffs.

True the Vote, a 501(c)3 based in Texas, has been active for over a decade. It has advocated for voting policy changes like voter ID laws and stricter voting regulations, organizing poll-watching operations and other grassroots efforts, and suing jurisdictions over the state of their voter rolls, and often partnered with large and well-known conservative organizations

In the complaint, filed Wednesday morning and first obtained by Insider, lawyers for Campaign Legal Center Action and Common Cause Georgia accuse the Georgia GOP of unlawfully taking and then failing to properly report in-kind corporate contributions from the group in violation of the Federal Election Campaign Act.

The FEC defines in-kind contributions as a "non-monetary contribution" to benefit a campaign or committee. Federal law, however, bans corporations (including both for-profit and non-profit organizations) from making such contributions to candidates or party committees or coordinating with them.

*snip*

[PortTack]

1. SURPRISE!!!

[crickets]

2. BI article re True the Vote is well worth a read.

In late December, the watchdog group Campaign for Accountability filed a separate complaint with the Internal Revenue Service accusing True the Vote of running afoul of its 501(c)3 nonprofit status by explicitly engaging in political activity through its partnership with the Georgia GOP.

"This case touches on the fact that voter suppression and big money in politics are two sides of the same coin," Fischer said. "Efforts to limit the vote and to protect or expand the influence of secret donors, ultimately they're both having the effect of depriving average voters a voice in the political process."

This a pattern for the organization, and not just in GA. It's a wonder they haven't lost their 501(c)3 status.