CHICO, Calif. – The Fair Political Practices Commission is still reviewing a complaint filed three months ago against Senator Mike McGuire, alleging misuse of campaign funds.
Sara Konsavage, an endorser of Audrey Denney who is also running for California’s 1st Congressional District seat, filed the complaint.
It alleges about $175,700 from McGuire’s Insurance Commissioner campaign committee was spent on digital ads that did not reference that race after he withdrew from the contest.
The complaint claims those ads were instead aimed at regions relevant to a potential congressional run. Konsavage is asking for an FPPC investigation into possible violations of the Political Reform Act.
McGuire’s campaign staff strongly denies those claims. They say the spending was lawful and tied to ballot measure activity, Proposition 50, as well as his role as a state officeholder.
The staff says expenditures in question were permissible under both federal and state law. They argue the complaint should be thrown out.
They say state committees are not required to spell out what office a candidate is running for in ads. Campaign funds can be used for ballot measures and broader political or governmental messaging, they say.
In regard to the Proposition 50 ads, they say those were directly tied to the measure. They describe it as a response to Trump-backed redistricting efforts.
“At the worst this is illegal on a state and federal level. At the best it’s legal and just kind of not ethical. Again, people might expect that from politicians at this point, but, I hold politicians and people in power to a higher level, and I expect ethical behavior from them, not just legal behavior,” Konsavage said.
Debra Lucero, a former county supervisor, defended McGuire. “Speaking from experience, this exact thing happened to me when I was running, wearing an opponent, and a Republican opponent. In this case, made complaints against me and it’s a time waster. You end up having to get an attorney, it’s designed as a distraction, and I really think that Mike McGuire is the only candidate in this race with the record of doing the right thing and decades of experience,” Lucero said.
McGuire’s staff says they believe the complaint is being resurfaced now as a strategic move ahead of a debate. They say it’s meant to paint the senator in a negative light.
They point out the FPPC complaint was originally filed in February. They say no action has been taken since.
The FPPC sent a response tied to the complaint. “After reviewing the complaint, we have concluded that we will require additional time beyond the initial 14-day period to evaluate this matter in order to determine whether additional investigation is appropriate,” the FPPC said.
That does not mean wrongdoing has or has not been found. The FPPC spokesperson would not provide an update on where the investigation stands, referring back to the statement that they needed more time.
“Voters are smart and they’ll see right through yet another completely baseless attack by Audrey Denney. This doozy of a claim is based on meritless and months-old allegations made by a longtime Denney campaign worker that have gone nowhere. Instead, Denney should explain why she’s personally pocketed thousands of dollars from corrupt corporate polluters like Cargill while claiming to have never taken a dime of corporate PAC money.”
The complaint that was filed to the FPPC can be read in its entirety below: