On Tuesday, the Trump campaign filed a formal complaint with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) in an attempt to prevent funds raised for President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign from being transferred to Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential bid.
This move marks a significant escalation in the legal battles surrounding the 2024 election campaign finance.
The complaint, filed by the Trump campaign’s general counsel David Warrington, asserts that such a transfer would equate to an excessive contribution, violating the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971.
“Kamala Harris is seeking to perpetrate a $91.5 million dollar heist of Joe Biden’s leftover campaign cash — a brazen money grab that would constitute the single largest excessive contribution and biggest violation in the history of the Federal Election Campaign Act,” the complaint states.
The complaint targets President Biden, Vice President Harris, the Biden campaign (now functioning as the Harris campaign), and campaign treasurer Keana Spencer.
It accuses them of “flagrantly violating the Act by making and receiving an excessive contribution of nearly one hundred million dollars, and for filing fraudulent forms with the Commission purporting to repurpose one candidate’s principal campaign committee for the use of another candidate.”
Responding to the complaint, Harris campaign spokesperson Charles Kretchmer Lutvak dismissed it as another baseless legal claim aimed at distracting from the campaign’s momentum.
“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,” Lutvak stated.
He highlighted the campaign’s recent fundraising success, “raising $100 million in our first 36 hours and signing up 58,000 volunteers.”
The FEC’s pace in resolving such enforcement issues suggests that any resolution is unlikely before Election Day. Election law expert Rick Hasen from UCLA remarked, “I don’t think most campaign finance lawyers believe that this is a best reading of the law,” but acknowledged the potential for prolonged FEC proceedings.
Notably, veteran Republican election lawyer Charlie Spies recently argued that the Biden-Harris team must be formally nominated by their party before any funds can be legally transferred.
Contrarily, Federal Election Commissioner Dara Lindenbaum, considered a swing vote on the evenly divided commission, indicated that Harris could access the funds raised by the Biden campaign if she becomes the Democratic nominee.
As the complaint awaits review, this development adds another layer to the complex legal and political landscape of the 2024 presidential race.
