GOP nominee from Oregon cleared of campaign cash violation

WASHINGTON (AP) — Alek Skarlatos, a Republican nominee for Congress in Oregon, was cleared this week of violating campaign finance law, months after a Democratic-aligned group filed a complaint alleging he improperly funded his campaign with money from a nonprofit he also controlled.

“Democrats have created a false controversy to smear Alek Skarlatos," campaign manager Ross Purgason said in a statement. “The (Federal Election Commission) has dismissed these false allegations.”

Skarlatos, who is running for a second time to represent a coastal Oregon district, established the nonprofit veterans group 15:17 Trust shortly after losing his bid for the seat in 2020, pledging to advocate for veterans “left high and dry” by the country “they put their lives on the line for." And he used $93,000 left over from his campaign to help seed the nonprofit.

But several months later, after Skarlatos decided in 2021 to run for the seat again, the nonprofit transferred $65,000 back to his campaign. The transfers of money were the subject of an Associated Press story last year, which was followed by a complaint filed with the FEC by End Citizens United, a Democrat-aligned group.

Campaign finance laws prohibit candidates from self-dealing and from accepting illicit money from the often opaque and less regulated world of political nonprofits. That includes a prohibition on candidates donating campaign cash to a nonprofit they control, as well as a broader ban on accepting contributions from such groups, legal experts say.

But in this case, the FEC found that Skarlatos' nonprofit wasn't very active and failed to raise much money, taking in about $1,800. The agency also determined that the transfers of cash from Skarlatos' campaign to his nonprofit and back were done in a short enough time...