Multiple states are diving headfirst into investigations against the Democrat fundraising platform ActBlue, suspecting it of money laundering on a grand scale. On August 1, Wyoming Secretary of State Chuck Gray, Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares, and Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey all announced their offices were probing suspicious donations funneled through ActBlue. This isn’t ActBlue’s first rodeo with controversy; they’ve faced similar accusations in the past.
Just last July, Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) urged the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to scrutinize the platform after noticing hundreds of thousands of suspicious small donations since 2016. Now, it seems state officials are stepping up where the FEC might have lagged.
In a pointed demand letter, Miyares cited allegations of campaign money laundering that could jeopardize the integrity of the 2024 November elections. He expressed concerns about ActBlue’s operations in Virginia, stating, “My office has become aware of multiple serious allegations that ActBlue has engaged in fraudulent, deceptive, and/or otherwise illegal activities in the Commonwealth of Virginia and/or have aided and abetted others in doing so.” He pointed out that some donors, often listed as “not employed” or “retired,” suspiciously made thousands of dollars in multiple daily contributions over several years.
Additionally, Miyares noted several donors with suspect addresses. He suggested that these irregularities might indicate the use of fictional donors or dummy accounts, raising the specter of fraudulent reporting by ActBlue. “The citizens of the Commonwealth of Virginia deserve to know that nonprofit and political entities are financed in a legal manner and that entities operating in Virginia are legitimately and legally raising funds,” Miyares emphasized.
In Missouri, Attorney General Andrew Bailey voiced his concerns via Twitter, stating, “My team is looking into the disturbing allegations surrounding ActBlue. More to come.” Similarly, the Wyoming Secretary of State’s office announced an investigation into ActBlue Wyoming, a PAC registered in the state. Chuck Gray didn’t mince words, accusing ActBlue of identity theft to mask illegal donations, including contributions from foreign actors. He warned that violations of the Wyoming Election Code would not go unpunished.
“The widespread allegations against ActBlue are deeply troubling, and we must ensure that political action committees are following the Wyoming Election Code,” said Gray. He added that falsely claiming donations from individuals who never donated would be a felony under state law, and he vowed a thorough review to ensure compliance.
James O’Keefe, known for his investigative work, has spotlighted the extensive network of alleged illegal donation-harvesting operations run by the Democrats. O’Keefe’s investigations, using public FEC data, uncovered significant discrepancies between reported donations and what individual donors claimed they actually gave. Many couldn’t explain why FEC reports showed them donating far more than they remembered.
ActBlue has long faced accusations of laundering millions by using the profiles of ordinary donors to mask large donations, thereby hiding the true identities of big donors, including potential foreign entities. This scheme allegedly allows the platform to illegally fund Democrat campaigns while maintaining an illusion of grassroots support.
