Senate Democrat Jacky Rosen faces ethics complaint over campaign launch

EXCLUSIVE — A Democratic senator is facing an ethics complaint over allegedly using taxpayer resources unlawfully in connection to her decision to seek reelection in 2024.

Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV) announced her reelection campaign on April 5 and posted a video on Twitter noting that she will “fight for hardworking Nevada families.” However, because this same campaign account video appears to have included footage of Rosen in the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing room, the senator may have violated federal law, according to the Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust, which on Wednesday filed a complaint to the Senate Select Ethics Committee calling for an investigation.

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“Senator Rosen is clearly using video taken in her official capacity in an official government building for campaign purposes in violation of federal law and Senate ethics rules,” Kendra Arnold, executive director of the right-leaning watchdog group, wrote to the committee’s chairman, Sen. Chris Coons (D-DE), and vice chairman, James Lankford (R-OK), in the complaint, which was first obtained by the Washington Examiner.

“The law is broad — not only does official resources include any use of title and video taken in government buildings, but it does not allow for a senator to evade the law by re-posting video obtained from a news outlet,” the complaint added. “The law is clear and the image above speaks for itself — there are no facts that can excuse this violation.”

Rosen, who joined the Senate in 2019 after representing Nevada‘s 3rd Congressional District in the House for two years, described in the video how she is “always focused on making a difference in people’s lives.” Almost halfway through her reelection video announcement, Rosen included an image from a video posted in March 2021 by CBS News appearing to show the senator with Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV) in the Judiciary Committee hearing room.

Senators are barred from using official resources for campaign or political activities, according to federal law. Official resources may include government buildings, like Senate offices, the Capitol building, or also staff, websites, and social media accounts.

“This is an important rule because it not only protects taxpayer-funded resources from abuse, but it also protects the integrity of official proceedings by reducing the incentive for senators to use them for political purposes,” the watchdog wrote in its complaint. “It is important that the authority of the federal government not be used for campaigning. Therefore, we urge the committee to stop senator Rosen from using official resources in her reelection campaign.”

It’s unclear if Rosen or her campaign sought guidance or counsel from the ethics committee before making her reelection announcement. The Washington Examiner reached out to the ethics committee for comment on Wednesday morning.

Rosen is the only declared Democratic candidate running for Nevada’s Senate seat in 2024. She captured 50.4% of the vote in 2018 against then-Sen. Dean Heller (R-NV), who assumed his Senate seat in 2011 and previously represented Nevada’s 2nd Congressional District.

Several left-leaning advocacy groups have already endorsed Rosen, including the political action committees End Citizens United, Feminist Majority, and EMILY’s List, which seeks to elect pro-abortion female candidates. Rosen’s campaign pulled in over $2.4 million between January and March, transferring more than $200,000 from her joint fundraising committee, according to campaign finance disclosures.

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So far, two Republicans, ex-California congressional candidate and civil rights attorney Ronda Kennedy and Las Vegas realtor Stephanie Phillips, have entered the Nevada Senate primary.

Rosen’s campaign and office did not reply to requests for comment.