Ron DeSantis is distancing himself from his state PAC, which is almost certainly a prelude to moving its money – over $86 Million – into a federal super PAC backing his presidential campaign. That’s ILLEGAL.Ron DeSantis is distancing himself from his state PAC, which is almost certainly a prelude to moving its money – over $86 Million – into a federal super PAC backing his presidential campaign. That’s ILLEGAL.

 

https://www.politico.com/news/2023/05/09/desantis-2024-campaign-political-committee-00095947

--- The website for the committee was changed on Tuesday morning to say that its mission is “committed to advancing the Freedom Agenda and keeping Florida free.” But more importantly, the website says that the committee is associated with state Sen. Blaise Ingoglia and not DeSantis. The committee on Tuesday also filed paperwork that says Ingoglia is replacing a Tampa accountant as the official chair of the organization."---

--- But DeSantis cannot use money raised for Friends of Ron DeSantis in a federal race because state law does not limit how much someone can give to the political committee or the source of the donations. But that money could be shifted to a super PAC that backs DeSantis if the governor is no longer connected to the political committee. While some have questioned the legality of such a move, the Federal Elections Commission deadlocked over a similar strategy that was used by Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.). --- 

 

 

 

As this recent piece explains in detail, it has been illegal for over 20 years to use “soft money” – including money raised by a state PAC under state law – to run for federal office.

https://campaignlegal.org/update/fec-needs-take-harder-line-soft-money

Unfortunately, the FEC has failed to hold candidates accountable for doing exactly what the law prohibits: moving soft money in state committees to federal super PACs backing their candidacy. We filed complaints against Byron Donalds and Debbie Lesko, but the FEC did nothing.

The failure to enforce the law has carved a clear path for others to follow, and it seems like DeSantis knows it. He’s distancing himself from “Friends of Ron DeSantis” the same way Byron Donalds did before transferring soft money to an allied super PAC.

If DeSantis does break the law, he won’t be alone: We also recently filed a complaint against Donald Trump and his leadership PAC Save America for illegally moving $60 Million in soft money to MAGA Inc., a super PAC backing Trump’s presidential campaign.

https://campaignlegal.org/update/trump-illegally-using-soft-money-run-president-2024

It's essential that candidates abide by the federal campaign finance laws that protect voters by ensuring transparency and accountability in our elections; soft money undermines those laws. The FEC needs to do its job and enforce the laws banning soft money!