Campaign Legal Center Filed a complaint as a “straw donor”shared exclusively with The Hill, alleging that a mysterious group funneled more than $1 million into a super PAC just before the 2024 general election to hide the true source of the funds.
Delaware-based Stop China Now has donated $1.6 million to the super PAC Save Western Culture, which has spent nearly $1.4 million on provocative ads, mailers and robocalls. , effectively boosted the campaign by attacking Republican candidates and praising liberal candidates in close House and Senate races. Democratic Party candidate.
Due to the timing of the donations, Save Western Culture, which was formed on October 11, does not disclose the donations until after Election Day, so voters do not know who was trying to influence their vote. It remained.
The true source of funding remains unclear behind Stop China Now, which was formed on October 3 and shares an address with Save Western Culture, a UPS mailbox in Greenfield, Massachusetts. be. A campaign finance expert previously told The Hill that these facts “raise several factors.” That's a red flag. ”
“Taken together, these facts demonstrate that a super PAC and apparent straw donor used the same “Independent expenditures amounted to $1 million in the final weeks before the 2024 election,” the Campaign Legal Center alleged in the complaint.
Seth Martin, who is listed as both the super PAC treasurer and nonprofit corporation founder, did not respond to requests for comment through the email address listed on Save Western Culture. .
Stop China Now's only online presence is minimal website It states that its mission is to oppose “the influence of communist governments in American public policy.” facebook page I had no followers, no likes, no posts, but I found the Campaign Legal Center.
The Election Legal Center called on the Federal Election Commission (FEC), the government agency tasked with enforcing campaign finance laws, to investigate the alleged straw donor.
“The use of straw donors fundamentally undermines the basic transparency required below,” the Campaign Legal Center wrote. [the Federal Election Campaign Act]This is essential to ensure that voters participate in elections with a full understanding of who is spending money to influence their votes, and to protect elections from actual or apparent corruption. is. ”
