SPEAKER’S DEAL WITH DFL RUFFLES FEATHERS
12/22/09
Speaker of the House Margaret Anderson Kelliher’s
(DFL-Minneapolis) gubernatorial campaign has been
racking up the good publicity lately, winning
numerous endorsements, but now her campaign was at
the center of a campaign finance controversy.
Kelliher’s campaign, working off of advice from the
state DFL Party, believed they could direct
contributors who had already reached their annual
maximum donation limit to give money directly to the
DFL Party to help Kelliher pay for the use of a
database. The arrangement became an issue when
another DFL Gubernatorial candidate, Rep. Tom
Rukavina (DFL-Virginia), sought information about the
agreement’s legality under Minnesota campaign finance
law. In response, Party officials asked their
attorneys to review the arrangement and it was the
opinions of the attorneys that it was illegal.
The DFL Party has since returned $1500 in contributions to three people who gave to the Party on the advice of the Kelliher campaign and letters explaining the situation were sent to the Campaign Finance Board from the Kelliher campaign and the DFL Party. Four other people also gave money to the Party that went towards Kelliher’s payment for use of the database, but those people did not want their contributions returned as they did not give it for any particular purpose. As the news came out, many of Kelliher’s DFL competitors vocalized their frustration with the situation. Concerns were raised that the DFL Party was playing favorites and whether the agreement was simply a way to circumvent contribution limits. Kelliher’s campaign maintains it was an honest mistake and DFL Chair Brian Melendez denied any favoritism and called the charge “a cheap shot.”
It is not only fellow Democrats who were upset about the situation; the MN Republican Party filed a complaint with the Campaign Finance Board. It is not yet clear what view the Board will take on these errors, but they have scheduled a review of the case on January 12, 2010.
The DFL Party has since returned $1500 in contributions to three people who gave to the Party on the advice of the Kelliher campaign and letters explaining the situation were sent to the Campaign Finance Board from the Kelliher campaign and the DFL Party. Four other people also gave money to the Party that went towards Kelliher’s payment for use of the database, but those people did not want their contributions returned as they did not give it for any particular purpose. As the news came out, many of Kelliher’s DFL competitors vocalized their frustration with the situation. Concerns were raised that the DFL Party was playing favorites and whether the agreement was simply a way to circumvent contribution limits. Kelliher’s campaign maintains it was an honest mistake and DFL Chair Brian Melendez denied any favoritism and called the charge “a cheap shot.”
It is not only fellow Democrats who were upset about the situation; the MN Republican Party filed a complaint with the Campaign Finance Board. It is not yet clear what view the Board will take on these errors, but they have scheduled a review of the case on January 12, 2010.