The complaint targets President Biden, Vice President Harris, the Biden campaign, and campaign treasurer Keana Spencer.
The Trump campaign claims that Kamala Harris is attempting to execute a “$91.5 million heist” of Joe Biden’s leftover campaign funds. They argue that this would be the largest excessive contribution and the most significant violation in the history of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971.
David Warrington, general counsel for the Trump campaign, accuses them of “submitting fraudulent forms to the Commission” by repurposing Biden’s principal campaign committee for Harris’s use. Warrington argues that Harris merely replaced Biden’s name with her own rather than filing her own Statement of Candidacy.
He asserts, “There is no provision in federal campaign finance law for Kamala Harris to assume Joe Biden’s candidacy by amending his Form 2, taking control of his campaign via Form 1 amendments, and appropriating all of his funds.”
Warrington also criticizes the Biden campaign for making an excessive contribution to Harris, stating, “This is essentially a $91.5 million excessive contribution from one presidential candidate to another— from Joe Biden’s campaign to Kamala Harris’s. This undermines our campaign finance laws.”
Federal law limits contributions between federal candidate committees to $2,000. According to Warrington, Biden for President is attempting to make an excessive contribution exceeding approximately $91 million, which is over 45,000 times the legal limit.
The Trump campaign also argues that since Biden withdrew from the race before transferring the funds, he is barred from keeping the contributions.
The Harris campaign is expected to strongly counter these claims, noting that when the campaign was first registered with the FEC, it was listed as the “principal campaign committee” for both Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.
According to ABC News, the committees involved—now renamed Harris for President, Harris Victory Fund, and Harris Action Fund—are the same entities that were previously used.
Charles Kretchmer Lutvak, a spokesperson for the Harris campaign, responded: “Republicans may be envious of Democrats’ enthusiasm to defeat Donald Trump and his allies, but baseless legal claims—like those made in the past to suppress votes and steal elections—will only divert attention while we mobilize volunteers, engage voters, and win this election.”
The Harris campaign also reported a surge in donations, raising over $100 million between Sunday afternoon and Monday evening after Biden ended his reelection bid and endorsed Harris.
