At least three vulnerable House Democrats are reported to have returned campaign donations they received from the Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, DN.Y.
The Ocasio-Cortez campaign sent $ 5,000 donations to several lawmakers who would face tough campaigns in 2022. At least three of these Democrats – Reps. Carolyn Bourdeaux, D-Ga., Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich. And Conor Lamb, D-Penn – declined the donations or pledged to return them, according to a POLITICO report published on Friday.
Lawmakers are said to be concerned that being linked to Ocasio-Cortez, who is an avowed Democratic socialist, could harm them with undecided voters.
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Ocasio-Cortez’s payments allegedly circulated through the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), which clashed with the congresswoman for a second term.
The Ocasio-Cortez campaign reportedly received wire transfer information from DCCC employees without the approval of superiors. Normally, vulnerable members will seek any financial increase they can find, but this time the donations came unsolicited and without notice.
The DCCC team reportedly did not foresee the double-edged sword of tying the controversial congressman to the most vulnerable members of the party in the House.
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DCCC spokesman Chris Hayden did not talk about the details of the payments to POLITICO, but he called the money transfers “communication failure”.
“We appreciate Mr Ocasio-Cortez’s continued commitment to a Democratic majority,” said Hayden. “Due to a communication failure, some transfers were made in error, but this has been resolved.”
“The Republican Party has spent four years saying that the frontliners are all socialists. Now they have the revenue to prove it,” said a consultant who works with swinging Democrats. “Anyone telling themselves that this will not be in campaign ads is denying it.”
“Frontliners” is a term used to describe members who are vulnerable to re-election during an election cycle.
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The GOP is likely to capitalize payments on political ads as the 2022 election cycle begins to intensify.
The Ocasio-Cortez campaign, like those of Lamb, Bourdeaux and Slotkin, did not immediately return Fox News’s request for comment.