Top Democrat Donation Processor Act Blue Faces Investigation by U.S. House of Representatives

by Casey Harper

Act Blue, a major donation processor for the Democratic Party, is under investigation over concerns that its donation processing service is being used to circumvent campaign finance laws.

The Republican-led House Oversight Committee launched the investigation, citing “reports of potentially fraudulent and illegal financial activity” in a letter to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen.

Lawmakers are asking Yellen for copies of reports on suspicious financial activity involving ActBlue, which serves as an online collection point for online donations to Democratic candidates.

From the letter:

Recent reports have raised the specter of fraud and campaign finance law evasion by individuals abusing online contribution platforms, particularly ActBlue. For example, ActBlue had failed to implement standard procedures to prevent identity theft and fraud, such as requiring a Card Verification Value (CVV) to process online transactions, until it was criticized for failing to do so. ActBlue is also under investigation by several state officials in connection with contributions allegedly made fraudulently through the platform without the knowledge of the reported contributor. In Virginia, reports of contribution activity facilitated through the ActBlue platform included “several instances in which individual donors made tens of thousands of individual donations worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares said in August that he was investigating reports of ActBlue abuse after reports emerged of “fake” accounts being used to make thousands of donations, allegedly by criminal sources.

Donating on behalf of someone else is illegal and can be used to circumvent oversight and limits on contributions.

“These malicious actors could include foreigners who are not lawfully admitted for permanent residence and who are legally prohibited from contributing to campaigns or political parties,” the letter said.

As allegations of Russian involvement and voter fraud in recent federal elections have mounted, scrutiny and monitoring of possible foreign interference in U.S. elections has increased for both Republicans and Democrats.

Act Blue did not respond to a request for comment.

“We cannot tolerate shady practices, foreign interference, and blatant exploitation of our campaign finance laws,” Rep. Nick Langworthy, R-N.Y., wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter. “The American people deserve to know who is really behind these contributions. ActBlue has been funneling questionable donations into Democratic campaigns for far too long, raising serious concerns about fraud and illegal contributions…”

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Casey Harper is a reporter at The Center Square in Washington, DC.

Photo “Act Blue Donation Platform” by Act Blue.

The post Top Democrat Donation Processor Act Blue Faces US House Investigation first appeared on The Arizona Sun Times.