Citizens United and GOP State Allies Challenge Biden-Harris Campaign Funds with FEC Complaint

WASHINGTON — A conservative group alongside several Republican state parties filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) on Thursday. They are accusing Vice President Kamala Harris of improperly taking control of Biden campaign funds following his withdrawal from the race.

The complaint urges the FEC’s six-member commission, which is equally divided between Democrats and Republicans, to “immediately initiate enforcement proceedings to prevent Harris from using her ill-gotten gains for her campaign in the little time remaining between now and the November general election.”

After President Joe Biden suspended his reelection efforts and endorsed Harris as the likely Democratic nominee, the Biden campaign officially rebranded itself as the Harris campaign. This change granted the vice president access to approximately $96 million in campaign funds as of June 30.

Harris’ campaign spokesperson, Charles Kretchmer Lutvak, responded to the complaint, stating it had no merit.

“Republicans may be jealous that Democrats are energized to defeat Donald Trump and his MAGA allies, but baseless legal claims – like the ones they’ve made for years to try to suppress votes and steal elections – will only distract them while we sign up volunteers, talk to voters, and win this election,” he said.

The FEC did not provide a comment on the situation.

Citizens United, known for its role in reversing campaign finance restrictions in a landmark 2010 Supreme Court case, joined the complaint. They were joined by Republican organizations from 16 states and one U.S. territory — the Virgin Islands.

The state GOP parties involved include Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, and Wyoming.

According to the Harris campaign, it raised $100 million from Sunday, when Biden announced his exit, through Monday evening. These campaign records will become public in mid-October when quarterly reports are due to the FEC.

The Trump campaign filed a similar FEC complaint on Tuesday, as reported by CNN.

Sean Cooksey, the Republican FEC chair appointed by Donald Trump in 2020, suggested that Harris might not have access to the funds. In a social media post, he referenced a regulation stating that if a candidate is not participating in the general election, all contributions for the general election must be returned, refunded, redesignated, or reattributed as appropriate.

Given her role as vice president, Harris was part of Biden’s presidential campaign committee. Nevertheless, any resolution to the complaint is unlikely before the November elections, as the FEC is still addressing cases dating back to the 2016 election cycle.