California Conservative Carl DeMaio hit with a campaign finance complaint
Good morning and welcome to the A.M. Alert!
DID REPUBLICAN CARL DEMAIO USE PAC FUNDS FOR ASSEMBLY CAMPAIGN?
Carl DeMaio, a Southern California conservative politician, podcaster and founder of the PAC Reform California, is in hot water for possibly using funds from the political action committee to support his 2024 state Assembly campaign.
According to a campaign finance complaint filed by the Peace Officers Research Association of California on Aug. 28, DeMaio violated campaign finance laws when he used his Reform California platform to bolster his campaign to represent Assembly District 75, which encompasses the area east of San Diego and touches the U.S.-Mexico border.
DeMaio, a former San Diego City Councilman, transferred his website and contact database from Reform California to his Assembly campaign website, the report alleges. His campaign failed to report a $260,000 TV ad buy in 2023, and may have used funds raised for the Reform California Voter Guide to help with his Assembly campaign costs.
“The political establishment doesn’t like that Carl DeMaio fights them and has exposed their corruption, so they have filed blatantly false and frivolous complaints against our campaigns for years,” said Jen Jacobs, a spokesperson for DeMaio. “It won’t distract or intimidate Carl DeMaio into backing down from fighting them and reforming our broken state.”
Brian Marvel, president of PORAC, countered, “Carl DeMaio’s actions are a clear violation of both the law and the public trust. His misuse of funds to further his own political ambitions is unacceptable, and we stand firmly against his candidacy for Assembly District 75. Voters deserve leaders who respect the rule of law and prioritize the success of all Californians over their personal gain.”
According to its website, PORAC represents more than 80,000 public safety members and has chapters across the state of California.
DeMaio has led several campaigns to get a statewide voter ID measure on California ballots, and these initiatives routinely fail to collect enough signatures. But according the Voice of San Diego, DeMaio gets something potentially more useful: data collection.
“This is particularly concerning since it appears that Reform California is handing over this data to DeMaio’s Assembly campaign in violation of contribution limits and other campaign finance law restrictions,” said Marvel in the FPPC complaint.
There have been at least four California Fair Political Practices Commission complaints filed against DeMaio since 2016, according to the commission’s website. The FPPC said it is currently investigating a complaint made against DeMaio from February of this year, and the other complaints were closed after investigation.
NEWSOM RECALL CAMPAIGN REDUX FIZZLES
Via Nicole Nixon...
The latest effort to recall Gov. Gavin Newsom from office failed to gather enough signatures, the campaign confirmed Tuesday, the deadline to submit the necessary 1.3 million signatures.
“We’re not turning in any signatures,” Anne Hyde Dunsmore, chief petitioner with the campaign, said in an interview Tuesday. “The process is time consuming and we felt that we had done what we needed to do.”
The group’s failure to gather enough signatures means Newsom will not face a second recall election. In 2021, he defeated a recall attempt with 62% of California voters opting to keep him in office. A year later he won a second term in office with 59%. Newsom is term-limited and will leave office in 2027.
“Serial losers, losing,” Newsom campaign spokesman Nathan Click said.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“While we did not get every bill across the finish line, we are proud that the majority of our legislative package has made it to the Governor’s Desk. This accomplishment reflects the unprecedented nature of this effort — a comprehensive package that, if enacted, will create lasting, generational impacts for Black Californians.”
- Assemblyman Dr. Corey A. Jackson, D-Riverside, member of the California Legislative Black Caucus
Best of The Bee:
House cleaners, nannies and other domestic workers employed by agencies will get new workplace safety protections next year under a bill California lawmakers sent to Gov. Gavin Newsom Saturday, the final day of the legislative session, via Nicole Nixon
Fentanyl-related deaths have jumped in Sacramento County. See where they are most common, via Phillip Reese
Gavin Newsom’s commute makes him a hypocrite. We’re left holding his climate goals, via Opinion writer Tom Philp
Nearly 300 homes evacuated as Bear Fire in Northern California grows to nearly 1,400 acres, via Stephen Hobbs and Darrell Smith
