EXCLUSIVE: The House Administration Committee is investigating Democrat fundraising giant ActBlue over concerns that “lenient donor verification standards” are allowing illicit cash to be funneled into left-wing political campaigns.
“I write today to request information on ActBlue’s donor verification policies and procedures. At our recent full committee hearing concerning the oversight of the Federal Election Commission, committee members and some commissioners expressed concern over lenient donor verification standards,” Committee Chair Bryan Steil, R-Wis., wrote to ActBlue CEO Regina Wallace-Jones.
“Further, the Committee is aware of allegations from across the country that malicious actors have used ActBlue’s systems to funnel unlawful funds to political committees on your platform in federal elections, as well as in state elections, such as the recent judicial election for Wisconsin Supreme Court.”
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ActBlue amasses small-dollar donations from across the country and then funnels them to various Democrat candidates and causes. Republicans use a similar platform known as WinRed.
Steil cited reports that “untraceable prepaid cards” were used to make ActBlue donations. He also suggested that at least some of that money could be coming from foreign sources.
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“In other cases, allegations suggest that malicious actors employ standard identity theft practices to funnel unlawful funds to ActBlue platform users, with the names of actual persons used to make contributions without their knowledge or consent,” the letter reads.
“It appears that many of these alleged schemes would have been prevented had ActBlue employed standard online financial security practices.”
The committee has asked ActBlue to respond by Nov. 14 on whether it uses added donor verification measures like a credit card security code or other identification methods and whether codifying those measures in federal law would have any effect on the fundraising giant’s operations.
Lawmakers also asked for the organization’s input into whether the committee should “explore other areas” to crack down on the flow of foreign cash into U.S. elections.
ActBlue has amassed more than $283 million for various Democrat campaigns and groups in the third quarter of 2023 alone, according to a report on the site. The average contribution size was $36.26.
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