Two voting advocacy groups founded by Democrat Stacey Abrams were hit with a record $300,000 fine by the Georgia Ethics Commission for violating campaign finance laws during Abrams’ 2018 gubernatorial campaign. The penalty, announced Wednesday, is the largest ethics fine ever imposed by Georgia’s Ethics Commission and possibly any state ethics commission in the U.S.
The groups, the New Georgia Project and its fundraising arm, the New Georgia Project Action Fund, admitted to 16 violations, including failing to register as a political committee and failing to disclose $4.2 million in contributions and $3.2 million in expenditures tied to the 2018 election. The organizations also failed to report $646,000 in contributions and $174,000 in expenditures in 2019 while advocating for a ballot initiative.
Abrams founded the New Georgia Project in 2013 to increase voter registration among minorities and young voters. Although Abrams stepped down from the organization in 2017, its subsequent activities came under scrutiny. From 2017 to 2019, U.S. Senator Raphael Warnock served as the group’s CEO. Warnock’s office stated he was focused on voting rights and was not involved in compliance decisions related to campaign finance.
The Ethics Commission described the violations as “the largest and most significant instance of an organization illegally influencing our statewide elections in Georgia.” The commission emphasized that the fine sends a message of accountability to organizations seeking to improperly influence elections.
Abrams has faced criticism for her refusal to concede defeat to Republican Governor Brian Kemp in the 2018 gubernatorial race, which she lost by 60,000 votes. Despite her losses in 2018 and 2022, Abrams has remained a prominent figure in Democratic politics and voting rights advocacy, often touting the work of the New Georgia Project.
