Florida Democratic Party Chair Karen Thurman filed a complaint last Friday with the state’s Election Commission, accusing the Florida Republican Party of failing to file accurate finance reports with state officials.
The complaint seems intended to keep alive the recurring drama within the Florida GOP over credit-card spending by top elected officials, including disgraced former House Speaker Ray Sansom, R-Destin, who resigned his legislative seat last month.
Florida Republicans have refused to disclose credit card details demanded by Democrats and many media organizations. The party insists it is not compelled to release such data, but is conducting a series of audits to determine whether any misuse of funds occurred, officials have said.
Thurman’s complaint is focused specifically on what Democrats say is a discrepancy between what Florida Republicans reported on finance reports filed with the Federal Elections Commission and similar statements submitted to the state’s Division of Elections.
Florida Republican spokeswoman Katie Betta shrugged off the complaint, saying the party is fully compliant with all state and federal election law.
Source: newsserviceflorida.com
