Key facts
- GOP chairs of three House committees are probing ActBlue's handling of foreign donations and alleged misconduct.
- Investigators are seeking interviews with five ActBlue board members and requesting related documents.
- The board members have until June 16 to voluntarily comply with the requests.
- ActBlue's CEO, Regina Wallace-Jones, is expected to testify before the House Administration Committee on June 10.
- Concerns have been raised about whether ActBlue accurately represented its fraud-prevention practices to Congress.
Congressional investigators are intensifying their probe into the Democratic fundraising platform ActBlue, with GOP chairs of three House committees requesting interviews with five board members and a slew of documents. The investigation focuses on ActBlue's handling of foreign donations and its response to allegations of donor fraud and potential misrepresentation of facts to Congress. The board members have until June 16 to comply with the requests. The committees have accused ActBlue of stonewalling their investigation. House Administration Committee Chairman Brian Steil, House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, and House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan stated in letters that the Board of Directors may have participated in or been aware of misconduct. ActBlue's CEO, Regina Wallace-Jones, is scheduled to testify before the House Administration Committee on June 10 regarding the platform's vetting of foreign donations. Previous reporting indicated that ActBlue's outside counsel questioned whether the organization had accurately described its fraud-prevention practices to Congress. ActBlue's new outside counsel later acknowledged that certain donor-screening procedures were strengthened after the board learned of these concerns. The board chairwoman, Kimberly Peeler-Allen, reportedly told The New York Times that they did not issue a correction for things the committee had not closely examined. The Republican chairs are also scrutinizing the board's response to internal concerns about potential misleading information provided to Congress, high-profile departures, and alleged retaliation. An ActBlue lawyer reportedly had his network access cut off after warning the board about legal jeopardy, and unions have warned about leadership's association with volatility and toxicity, stating that legal and compliance functions had been compromised. ActBlue has consistently denied wrongdoing and has not been criminally charged, with spokespersons casting the probe as an attempt by Republicans to undermine the group ahead of the midterm elections.