A group known as the Change for Arizona 2024 PAC (CFAPAC) filed a complaint to the Federal Election Commission (FEC) against Senator Kyrsten Sinema (AZ-I) Thursday, alleging that she had misused her campaign funds.
“Specifically, Complainant alleges that Senator Sinema (pictured above), through her Committees, illegally diverted funds that were donated to her for campaigning for federal office by making expenditures for her personal use and benefit,” according to the complaint.
The complaint alleges that Sinema used roughly $180,000 in funds from the Sinema for Arizona Committee, the Sinema Leadership Fund, and her personal committee, the Getting Stuff Done PAC (GSDPAC), on noncampaign expenses. These include hotel stays, at least 17 luxury resorts in France and the United Kingdom, wineries in California and Oregon, high-end restaurants, and travel expenses. The CFAPAC shared that these expenditures occurred between 2019 and 2022 and argued this kind of spending is obviously out of line for campaign funds. Moreover, given the spending timeframe, the PAC stated that Sinema would not have been actively campaigning while these funds were spent.
As reported by The Daily Beast, one of Sinema’s hobbies is running in competitions, such as the 2022 Boston Marathon. However, records show that in April 2022, her campaign received a handful of sizable contributions from Massachusetts-based donors and used funding from the GSDPAC to pay for travel and meal expenses for the race. The report also details that, since 2019, Sinema has received similar donations from other areas where she would then participate in races.
The CFAPAC’s complaint states that Sinema continuing to pursue personal hobbies while in the office is no crime, but using campaign funding to do so is. The PAC also noted that some of Sinema’s trips involving fine dining or recreation coincided with a campaign event. However, they argue that one event during a multi-day trip does not justify using campaign funds for all expenses related to the outing.
Moreover, the CFAPAC stated that Sinema’s potentially illicit spending was not just for herself. Sinema is friends with former Hawaii Representative Tulsi Gabbard, and Sinema’s office hired Gabbard’s sister, Vrindavan Gabbard Bellord, as a security director in 2021. Another Daily Beast report shows that Bellord created a company called TOA Group, LLC, to which Sinema’s campaign committees paid $307,000. Sinema reportedly spends more on security than nearly any other congress member.
Additionally, the CFAPAC argued that Bellord had used the money from Sinema’s campaigns to fund travel expenses to recreational areas. This accusation is based on Bellord’s social media posts showing her hiking with the caption “always traveling for work.”
The PAC asked the FEC to conduct a full investigation into Sinema to determine if she has violated the Federal Election Campaign Act through this spending. If so, they asked the committee to sanction Sinema and hold her accountable.
“While Sinema is on international trips or running marathons or pursuing her high-end wine hobby — each of which has been subsidized by campaign donors — Arizona families are struggling with an increased cost of living and a housing crisis partially fueled by the very same private equity firms that donate to Senator Sinema’s campaigns,” the PAC wrote.
In response, Sinema’s office said this complaint is just a political attack.
“It’s not surprising that desperate political attacks from dark money Super PACs are based on lies. There’s no standing here, and Kyrsten remains laser focused on delivering lasting solutions to the challenges we face – including addressing our border crisis and ensuring Arizonans are protected from a national default,” said a Sinema spokesperson in an email to The Arizona Sun Times.
The CFAPAC is a Democrat super PAC that funds the Replace Sinema campaign, which seeks to get Sinema out of office in the upcoming 2024 election. The PAC was openly angered by Sinema’s move from the Democrat to Independent Party and said it would do everything possible to ensure “a real Democrat” gets elected.
However, the group’s opposition only matters if Sinema decides to run again, which she has not officially announced.
– – –
Neil Jones is a reporter for The Arizona Sun Times and The Star News Network. Follow Neil on Twitter. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Kyrsten Sinema” by Kyrsten Sinema.
