Carrollton, Georgia– republican Lieutenant Governor Bert Jones The Georgia Ethics Commission said Thursday that Trump was authorized to loan $10 million to his gubernatorial campaign.
Prosecutor Chris Carrwho is running against Jones, claimed so Evade campaign finance restrictions. But the Georgia Ethics Commission decided at a meeting in Carrollton, Georgia, that a loan to the leadership committee constituted a contribution under state law, and adopted a legal opinion that “nothing in existing law prohibits such a loan of personal funds.”
This idea allows Jones to continue spending his family’s fortune to pursue the Republican nomination. Carr and Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger They are the other two leading candidates in the Republican gubernatorial primary. They compete to succeed Governor Brian Kempwho cannot legally run again after two terms, along with many Democrats.
The Republican and Democratic primaries are scheduled for May, followed by the general election in November 2026.
Under the 2021 state law, leadership committees can raise unlimited funds, can coordinate with candidates, and can raise money during legislative sessions when other fundraising is prohibited. But candidates cannot form leadership committees until they win their party’s nomination for governor or lieutenant governor.
Instead, it is limited to candidate committees, which can raise a maximum of $8,400 from each donor. As the current lieutenant governor, Jones controls the leadership committee, as does Kemp.
Rosario Palacios, executive director of the liberal-leaning watchdog group Common Cause Georgia, said the decision only reinforces the unfairness of the leadership committees.
“We certainly believe that this is an unfair advantage and does not allow for a true democratic process for voters,” Palacios said. “It’s not just about the candidates here. This is not a fair process for anyone.”
Jones provided documents showing he made loans of $7.5 million and $2.5 million to the WBJ leadership committee when he announced his candidacy for governor on July 8.
Under Georgia law, loans can only be made to a candidate committee, not a stand-alone political action committee or leadership committee, Carr said.
The commission earlier dismissed a complaint from Carr alleging that Jones violated state law because his previous financial disclosures did not show enough liquid assets to make such large loans to himself.
“It is disturbing that the commission shows no interest in understanding how Bert Jones went from claiming a net worth of $700,000 to lending himself $10 million,” Carr spokeswoman Julia Mazzone said.
Jones’ campaign did not respond to the substance of the ruling, with spokeswoman Kayla Lott calling Carr “bad at being a lawyer.”
Carr announced his candidacy for governor last year, saying he needed to raise money because he was not personally wealthy. Like Jones, Raffensperger has a large personal fortune. Carr’s supporters have created an independent committee, but it cannot coordinate with the Carr campaign.
Carr also filed a lawsuit in federal court to try to prevent Jones from using his leadership committee. But in August, U.S. District Judge Victoria Mary Calvert decided Dismiss the caseHe ruled that Carr should have challenged the constitutionality of the law. She said it was wrong to prosecute Jones and his campaign for “doing exactly what Georgia law allows them to do.”
Carr did not file a new lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the law. This may reflect pressures from other Republicans who view leadership committees as a means for them to maintain GOP political control. Kemp made extensive use of his leadership committee.
In 2022, A federal judge ruled That Kemp’s leadership committee was unable to spend money during that year’s Republican primaries, finding that a “disproportionate campaign finance scheme” violated challenger David Perdue’s First Amendment right to free speech. However, this case did not reach a final ruling on the constitutionality of the law.