The Democratic National Committee is accusing a pro-Robert F. Kennedy Jr. super PAC of not disclosing $10 million in loans in its latest attempt to foil RFK Jr.’s independent presidential bid.
The DNC filed a complaint Monday against American Values 2024 with the Federal Election Commission, claiming that the super PAC is violating federal law for not disclosing a $10 million loan from Gavin de Becker, with $9.65 million having been repaid.
“This is yet another example of AV24 playing fast and loose with election law,” Mary Beth Cahill, the DNC’s senior adviser, said in a statement. “It’s clear that they, along with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and his campaign, don’t believe that the rules apply to them.”
The complaint claims Timothy Mellon, former President Donald Trump’s “largest financial supporter this cycle,” poured $20 million into the PAC, which, combined with Becker’s loans, is 80% of AV24’s fundraising receipts. The DNC alleged that the PAC deceived the public about its financial support, pointing to two AV24 press releases that did not disclose that the funding coming from Becker was a loan that would be repaid, according to the complaint.
“This unprecedented loan arrangement has allowed them to not only inflate their fundraising numbers, but also to conceal the extent to which AV24 is almost single-handedly funded by Tim Mellon, Donald Trump’s largest donor this cycle,” Cahill added.
Neither Kennedy’s campaign nor AV24 responded to the Washington Examiner’s request for comment.
The DNC has previously claimed the RFK Jr. campaign will funnel votes away from President Joe Biden, helping Trump secure a victory in November. The DNC filed an FEC complaint last month alleging that AV24 and Kennedy’s campaign were illegally colluding over ballot access.
“President Biden’s sinking approval rating and plummeting polling numbers nationally and in key battleground states like Michigan have triggered unprecedented panic in both the Biden campaign and the Democratic National Committee,” Tony Lyons, co-founder of AV24, said in response to last month’s complaint.
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Kennedy has been fighting to get his name on state ballots ahead of the election. Last week, AV24 confirmed that Kennedy’s name will appear on the ballots in two crucial battleground states, Arizona and Georgia.
If Kennedy wants to get his name on the ballot in key states and meet state requirements, the DNC claimed that he will be in violation of federal rules because he cannot follow both state and federal laws at the same time.
