via RI Republican Party
Governor Gina Raimondo’s re-election campaign entered into an agreement with the Providence Democratic City Committee, which at the time was led by Patrick Ward, who was recently hired by her administration. Her campaign has indicated that this agreement is still legally in effect. As a result, the R.I. Republican Party has filed a complaint with the Federal Elections Commission against Governor Raimondo and the Providence Democratic City Committee regarding this agreement because it does not comply with 11 C.F.R. § 102.17.
R.I. Republican Party Chairman Brandon S. Bell commented: “The plain language of the Raimondo-Ward agreement specifies that the Providence Democratic City Committee and the Raimondo Campaign intends to pursue joint federal fundraising. Committees raising funds via federal joint fundraising activity must comply with the requirements in 11 C.F.R. § 102.17. The Raimondo-Ward agreement does not satisfy the requirements for engaging in a federal joint fundraising activity. For example, it did not establish a fundraising representative either by establishing a separate political committee to serve as the joint fundraising committee or by selecting an additional participating committee registered with the FEC. Also, it did not state an allocation formula providing the amount of percentage of each contribution received would be distributed to each participant. The federal requirements for joint fundraising activity apply to all committees even if they are not registered with the FEC.”
Bell concluded: “The Governor’s approval rating just keeps sliding down. Now it is below 40 percent according to a recent poll. She can’t bring any jobs to Rhode Island without giving away millions in taxpayer subsidies. She can’t competently oversee UHIP or DCYF. She has difficulty following the ethics code as shown when she hired former Rep. Don Lally. The only thing she seems to do well is fundraising from wealthy out of state donors for her re-election. We are sure she wants to use this talent to its fullest potential, but she still must follow the law. An agreement between a campaign and party committee to work together to raise federal funds is a joint fundraising activity and therefore must comply with federal regulations.”
