141,000 ActBlue “Smurfing” Donations to Democrats Found in Pennsylvania

Alleged money laundering scheme aimed at boosting longtime Democratic incumbent appear to fall short

An elaborate money laundering operation built around identity theft schemes could be responsible for more than a million dollars in donations that benefitted U.S. Sen. Bob Casey and other Pennsylvania Democratic candidates and causes in the 2024 election, according to a Restoration News analysis of campaign finance records. 

Donations that are out of proportion with the assets and profiles of individuals who are supposedly pumping funds into a left-of-center political action committee ActBlue have caught the attention of state level law enforcement officials and congressional figures. 

In October, a group of state attorneys general embarked on an investigation into allegations that ActBlue had become a conduit for “smurfing” techniques that involve the repackaging of large sums of money into smaller, individual transactions. A “smurf” is an individual whose name and identity is used without their permission or consent to funnel hundreds or even thousands of individual donations in their name. The sudden appearance of multiple donations from elderly or first-time donors is another potential tip off for investigators. Restoration News has also uncovered several instances where the identities appear to be fake. 

(RELATED: Are ActBlue’s Donors Even Real?)

Wisconsin Rep. Bryan Steil, the Republican chairman of the Committee on House Administration, has partnered with Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson (R), the ranking member of the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, to probe into the possibility that foreign countries have also made use of ActBlue to influence U.S. elections. Steil and Johnson have sent letters to Treasury Secretary Yellen, FBI Director Christopher Wray, and Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines. 

In their correspondence, Steil and Johnson requested access to any Suspicious Activity Reports (SARS) U.S. financial institutions filed concerning ActBlue, particularly those which mention Iran, Russia, Venezuela, and China.

The Federal Election Commission (FEC) records Restoration News obtained indicate a concrete effort was made to employ smurfing techniques in the presidential race and critical swing states like Pennsylvania. A smurf is typically an elderly, retired individual who is shown making multiple donations on the same day to the same entity. 

Restoration News, for instance, identified potential Pennsylvania smurfs in their 70s and 80s listed as residing in Yardley, Chesterbrook, Wayne, Lower Gwynedd, Columbia Cross Roads, Blue Bell, and Philadelphia. 

FEC records from 2018–2024 show at least 25 smurfs donating to ActBlue and to Casey. In this timeframe, the smurfs made 3,761 donations to Casey totaling $60,952 and 141,126 donations to ActBlue totaling $1,195,203. The donations range anywhere in the amount of $25 to $3,500. 

Casey, a three-term incumbent, went into his reelection race as a heavy favorite against David McCormick, his Republican challenger. But despite being heavily outspent by the Casey campaign, McCormick was holding onto a narrow lead at the time this story went to press.

(RELATED: Money Laundering Investigations into ActBlue, “Smurfing” Schemes Gain Momentum in Wisconsin)

Tens of Thousands of Contributions to Biden

Vice President Kamala Harris also benefitted from smurfing exercises that targeted swing states beyond just Pennsylvania. FEC records for Wisconsin, for instance, point to 24 smurfs making 3,500 donations totaling more than $41,000 in just the 2024 election cycle to the Harris presidential campaign. 

That may not sound like a particularly large amount, but it’s only recently that smurfing operations began to focus on Harris since President Biden withdrew from the presidential race this past summer. 

The figures for Biden tell the real story. 

A Restoration News analysis of FEC reporting from 2016–2024 shows 21 smurfs from across the country making 6,804 donations totaling $124,172.30 to Biden’s campaign and 87,132 donations totaling almost $900,000 to ActBlue in that same time period. 

The ActBlue network includes the PAC, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit called ActBlue Charities, and a 501(c)(4) called ActBlue Civics. Left-leaning political activists founded the ActBlue website in 2004 for the purpose of serving a fundraising platform to support the Democratic Party and liberal causes. ActBlue raised $2.4 billion for its clients from 2004 through 2018, according to Influence Watch. 

Earlier this fall, Steil introduced legislation crafted to prohibit PACs from accepting contributions from debit or credit cards without the use of card verification value numbers and billing addresses connected with the cards. If passed, the Shield Act could be used to prevent foreign funding from intruding into U.S. elections. 

(READ MORE: Pennsylvania Secretary of State Prevents Counties from Verifying Overseas Voters)