Top House Republicans are putting ActBlue, the Democratic fundraising powerhouse, under the microscope, questioning its donor verification practices and raising concerns over potential foreign influence in U.S. elections. On Tuesday, Rep. Bryan Steil (R-WI), Chair of the House Administration Committee, issued a subpoena to ActBlue demanding documents that could reveal whether donations are being properly vetted for foreign involvement. This inquiry follows allegations that the platform’s lack of robust security measures could make it easier for foreign actors to funnel money into U.S. political campaigns, a serious breach of federal election laws.
House Republican Conference Chair Elise Stefanik (R-NY) and Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-LA) have publicly supported the investigation, highlighting the importance of protecting U.S. elections from foreign interference. Stefanik has called for transparency, arguing that weak donation verification on ActBlue’s platform could allow contributions from foreign entities.
Stefanik commented, saying, “Malign foreign actors are attempting to hijack American elections through the Far Left Democrat fundraising platform ActBlue by tipping the scales in favor of Kamala Harris and Congressional Democrats. It has never been more critical to ensure American elections are free from foreign manipulation.”
The GOP’s concerns focus on ActBlue’s use of recurring and small-dollar donations, which could, theoretically, enable illegal foreign contributions to slip under the radar without more rigorous donor verification processes. Until recently, ActBlue did not require donors to provide a card verification value (CVV), leaving it open to foreign funds.
The subpoena, issued on Wednesday by Steil, called for ActBlue to release “documents and communications related to ActBlue’s donor verification policies and the potential for foreign actors, primarily from Iran, Russia, Venezuela, and China to use ActBlue to launder illicit money into U.S. political campaigns.”
ActBlue has responded to these accusations saying, “ActBlue has received Chairman Steil’s latest inquiry and will respond to address the continued inaccuracies and misrepresentations about our platform, as we have done previously. We rigorously protect donors’ security and maintain strict anti-fraud compliance practices. We have zero tolerance for fraud on our platform.”
Rep. Laurel Lee (R-FL), the chair of the panel’s subcommittee on elections, commented, saying, “In our investigation so far, we have found that loopholes in ActBlue’s insufficient security protocols may be exploited by bad actors, potentially leading to countries like China, Russia and Venezuela donating to campaigns in the names of Americans without their consent.”
Rep. Stephanie Bice (R-OK), also voiced her support for the subpoena, saying, “Like the chairman, I have been concerned by the inadequate security protocols at ActBlue, who haven’t required CVV verification and allow for pre-paid cards for political donations.”
The scrutiny of ActBlue signals ongoing friction between Republicans and Democrats over campaign finance practices, with GOP leaders emphasizing transparency and accountability as pillars of their platform.
With only a few days remaining before key primary elections, Republican lawmakers are pushing to highlight what they claim are security gaps in ActBlue’s fundraising operations. The subpoena, the latest development in the ongoing investigation, underscores the high stakes of securing U.S. elections from foreign influence and ensuring that all political donations meet federal standards for transparency and accountability.
