Ken Block files campaign finance complaint over attack mailers

Independent candidate for governor Ken Block has filed a complaint with the state Board of Elections about the over $228,000 the Rhode Island Democratic Party has spent on mailers mocking him while promoting his Democratic opponent, Helena Foulkes.

One such mailer features Block's head atop a duck over the words: "If Ken Block walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, he must be a REPUBLICAN ... Duck."

Another juxtaposes Block, in shades of greyish brown-and-black, against a photo of Foulkes, bathed in light, that says she "will be a governor who lowers costs and improves people's lives."

Foulkes reported the $228,125 in "in-kind party" contributions from the state Democratic party on the campaign report covering the last three weeks that she filed on Tuesday, Oct. 26.

The question the Block campaign is posing is whether a party contribution of that magnitude is legal under the Board of Elections rules that contain exemptions from the state's $2,000 cap on contributions from individuals and PACs, and the $25,000 cap on political party contributions.

"Given the financial scale of the violation and the fact that these mailers have been sent to tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of voters, I believe this is very newsworthy," Block campaign manager Matthew Schweich said Wednesday, on the day after the final round of pre-election campaign reports were filed.

In response to Block's allegation, Foulkes' campaign advisor Eric Hyers chalked it up to Block whining.

"Ken Block knows he is wrong," Hyers said in an email to The Journal. "But like he whined about the debate rules, whined about the candidates on the ballot, and whined that voters are learning about his well-documented opposition to the ACA, he is now whining about the rules. The spending cap from the party does not apply to mail."

Does campaign finance law cover mailers?

Both the rules and the law say: "A political party committee or political party committees may not make a contribution or contributions to a candidate of that political party which in the aggregate exceeds $25,000 within a calendar year."

Sounds simple, right?

But that is followed by these words: "However, there shall be no restriction on the amount of in-kind contributions a political party committee or political party committees may make to a candidate of that political party provided, however that for the purposes of this section only, the cost and preparation and airing of television and/or radio advertisements and the cost of any print advertisements shall not be considered an allowable "in-kind" contribution and shall be subject to the aforementioned aggregate limitation of $25,000."

Clear as mud?

The bigger picture of what the campaign finance reports show us

Block loaned his campaign another $20,000 of his own money in the last three weeks in an effort to keep pace with Foulkes' high-gear fundraising campaign.

In the three weeks between Oct. 6-27, Foulkes raised a net total of $446,528, including $29,767 from Political Action Committees, spent $541,219, and still had $237,168 left for her final push.

That haul included $1,000 each from the Laborers Public Employees PAC, Laborers State Employees and Laborers Political League. She also received $1,000 from the Construction Industries of RI PAC and $2,000 from the Building Industries PAC.

Foulkes received $2,000 each from CVS CEO David Joyner and Executive VP Prem Shah. She also got maximum $2,000 donations from Rhode Island FC founder Brett Johnson, movie producer Chad Verdi, Anduril CEO Brian Schimpf, Philanthropist Melinda Gates, Johnston Mayor Joseph Polisena Jr., his father former mayor Joseph Polisena and Providence Mayor Brett Smiley.

She received an in-kind contribution of $1,877 worth of event catering from Louie Stravato, a retired Providence Police Detective narcotics investigator, fitness instructor and reality television personality best known for competing on season 16 of "The Amazing Race."

Block, by way of comparison, raised $14,709 during the same three-week stretch on top of the $263,515 he already had on hand, loaned his campaign $20,000, and spent $234,138. That left him $64,085 for his final push.

Aaron Guckian the Republican candidate in the race, also loaned his campaign money: $7,000, on top of the $5,432 he raised since Oct. 6. With that and the money he already had on hand, he spent a total of $16,961 and had $2,895 left for the final week.

Block has loaned his campaign a total of $220,250 since the start of the year, including the $20,000 he put in this month. Republican Aaron Guckian has dipped into his own pocket to loan his campaign $17,500 this year, including the $7,000 this month.

This story has been updated with new information.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Ken Block files campaign finance complaint over attack mailers