Vice President Kamala Harris is the first Democratic presidential nominee in modern history not to disclose the names of her campaign’s top fundraisers, obfuscating a cadre of individuals who could serve in influential positions if she wins in November.
With the exception of Harris, Democratic presidential candidates have disclosed their bundlers, a term referring to individuals that organize and collect large sums of campaign contributions from other donors, in every presidential election since 2000, according to the New York Times. Harris’ apparent decision not to disclose important information about her backers follows the Democratic Party approving a national platform on Monday demanding greater transparency in campaign finance.
“Trust in democracy is critical to protecting democracy. Democrats will adopt ethics reforms to ensure every American can feel confident that their government is working for them, not for special interests,” the Democratic platform reads. “Democrats will create a federal ethics commission to strengthen good governance laws, like those requiring financial and lobbying disclosure.”
The Harris campaign has been showering bundlers with gifts during the Democratic National Convention, including free stays at the Ritz-Carlton and the Four Seasons, as well as an on-field visit to the Chicago Cubs’ Wrigley Field, the NYT reported.
Presidential bundlers also often secure high-level appointments and meetings with the candidate they are fundraising for, according to multiple outlets. Roughly one-third of President Joe Biden’s ambassador nominees as of January 2022 were campaign bundlers or their spouses, roughly consistent with the proportion nominated by presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, according to The Washington Post.
Obama appointed one bundler to a board that advised the Department of Energy and another being tapped to head the Federal Communications Commission, The Washington Times reported.
“Government accountability depends on transparency in our campaign finance system, and that includes transparency about presidential campaign bundlers,” a coalition of watchdog groups wrote in a January letter.
Campaigns are not legally required to disclose the identities of their bundlers, and the Harris campaign could still disclose its bundlers before election day, according to the NYT. The Trump campaign has also failed to identify its bundlers.
“It would be a sad day for America if the level of transparency about who is raising big money for presidential campaigns continues to fall,” Michael Beckel, the research director for Issue One, a nonprofit seeking to limit money in politics, told the NYT. “This is a transparency practice that is a guardrail for good government, and to see both sides eroding that guardrail is concerning.”
“We really do want to know who’s trying to influence presidential candidates — now,” Craig Holman, who works as a lobbyist for Public Citizen, told the NYT. “Any candidate who wants to be fair and honest ought to be disclosing this. I would not expect Trump to do that. I would expect Kamala Harris to do so.”
The Harris campaign did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
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