WinRed, which handles political donations for Republican candidates, faced questions from the attorney generals of New York, Connecticut, Maryland and Minnesota about its use of donation boxes. Mark in advance to lock in contributions to candidates and committees on a monthly or weekly schedule, court records show.
WinRed sued in Minnesota to block the polls, arguing that its activities were governed by federal campaign finance laws, not any state consumer protection laws that the attorney general said. reason to enforce.
Chief Justice John Tunheim of the US District Court in Minnesota on Wednesday dismissed WinRed’s case against Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison.
Tunheim said federal election laws “do not apply before general state consumer protection laws simply because the state seeks to apply them to a federally registered political committee.”
He also dismissed WinRed’s attempt to block investigations in Connecticut, Maryland and New York, saying he had no jurisdiction over those states.
New York Attorney General Letitia James praised the judge’s decision Wednesday.
“No company has the right to use politics as an excuse to mislead consumers,” James said in a statement. “They have a responsibility to be honest and transparent with their services, and it’s the responsibility of countries to fight fraud in all its forms.”
