D.C. fines Lewis George campaign, finding coordination with labor groups
The District’s Office of Campaign Finance on Friday ordered mayoral candidate Janeese Lewis George and her campaign to pay $16,000 in fines after investigators concluded her team improperly coordinated with labor unions and an independent expenditure committee that has spent about $1 million supporting her candidacy, allegations the campaign quickly denied and said it would fight.
Independent expenditure committees can raise and spend unlimited sums on advertising to support candidates — but only if they operate independently from the campaigns they back. When coordination occurs, those expenditures are treated as contributions, which are subject to strict limits.
The ruling, issued four days before the June 16 Democratic primary, also imposed a $4,000 fine on the independent expenditure committee, Safe & Affordable DC. The committee is funded largely by labor groups, including Unite Here Local 25, that employ several Lewis George campaign staffers. The agency found that a “firewall” meant to keep the campaign and the labor groups’ independent spending separate was insufficient.
Lewis George’s campaign vowed to overturn the agency’s order, calling it “absurd,” “outrageous” and a “last-ditch effort to derail a campaign.”
https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2026/06/13/dc-fines-lewis-george-campaign-finding-coordination-with-labor-groups/