Stacey Abrams Group Fined Largest Amount in Georgia History for Campaign Finance Violations

A Democratic advocacy organization founded by former Representative Stacey Abrams and once led by Senator Raphael Warnock has been fined $300,000 for violating Georgia’s campaign finance laws. The decision, announced on Wednesday by Georgia’s ethics commission, marks the conclusion of a six-year investigation into the activities of the New Georgia Project and its affiliated action fund during the 2018 election cycle.

The ethics commission found that the two entities raised $4.2 million and spent $3.2 million in support of Abrams’ 2018 gubernatorial campaign without disclosing these partisan contributions, a clear violation of state law. Abrams ultimately lost that election to Republican Brian Kemp, who defeated her again in a rematch in 2022.

The New Georgia Project and its action fund agreed to pay the largest fine in the commission’s 38-year history. The $300,000 penalty will be paid in two $150,000 installments and covers 16 instances of illegal activity. Importantly, the punishment targets the organizations themselves and not Abrams or Warnock directly.

National Review reports that according to the commission, the New Georgia Project failed to register as an independent campaign committee and did not file required campaign finance reports detailing contributions and spending in 2018. These undisclosed activities were aimed at supporting Abrams and other Democratic candidates. In 2019, the groups committed similar violations by failing to disclose $646,000 in contributions and $174,000 in spending to promote a voter referendum for Gwinnett County to join the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority system. Despite their efforts, the referendum was rejected by voters.

Under federal law, tax-exempt charities like the New Georgia Project are permitted to register voters but are prohibited from endorsing specific candidates or engaging in partisan activities. The commission’s investigation revealed that the organizations crossed these boundaries.

David Fox, the attorney representing the New Georgia Project, stated, “At a fundamental level, my clients understand and respect the commission’s decision on the facts of the law, and we believe that this is a reasonable resolution of this longstanding dispute.”

Stacey Abrams founded the New Georgia Project in 2013 to register voters from underrepresented groups in Georgia. She stepped away from her formal role in 2017 but maintained close ties to the organization’s leadership. Her spokesperson emphasized that Abrams was not involved in the organization’s compliance decisions.

Senator Raphael Warnock led the New Georgia Project until his 2020 Senate election. His spokesperson stated that Warnock was unaware of the campaign finance violations during his tenure, and the commission’s Republican director, David Emadi, confirmed that he found no evidence of Warnock’s direct involvement.

The ethics commission’s Republican majority first accused the New Georgia Project of wrongdoing in 2019. The organization had previously argued that it operated like other nonprofits and accused the commission of conducting a politically motivated investigation aimed at damaging Abrams’ political reputation. However, Wednesday’s settlement formally concludes the inquiry.

This is not the first time an advocacy group tied to Abrams has faced scrutiny, adds National Review. In 2020, the commission fined the group Gente for Abrams $50,000 for failing to register and disclose $240,000 in spending to support Abrams during the 2018 gubernatorial race. Afterward, the group registered and reported an additional $685,000 in expenditures for Abrams that year.