Recall group gives $11,000 in gifts to staffers

The Official Recall of Colorado Gov. Jared Polis group — which didn’t participate in the recent failed recall attempt by two other groups — has given $11,000 of the money it raised for the effort as gifts to staffers.

According to online campaignfinance records filed with the Secretary of State’s Office, committee manager Shane Donnelley got $5,000 as a “Thank you for caring about Colorado” gift, and secretary Lisa Pascoe and Weld County lead Rene McGill each received $3,000.

“Whether you call it a grift or a gift, this is just the latest in a string of events that show these recalls are being driven by scammers who are looking out for their own interests at the expense of unwitting voters,” said Curtis Hubbard, spokesman for the Democratic group working against the recalls, Democracy First.

The recall group did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

It’s not the first time the group has come under scrutiny for its spending.

The group’s chair, Juli-Andra Fuentes, was questioned about a nearly $30,000 donation to an independent expenditure committee she founded called Colorado for Trump. The Trump campaign told 9News that Fuentes’ group wasn’t affiliated with the campaign, and it might take action over the misleading name.

And a donor named Starle Brethauer filed a campaign finance complaint against the Official Recall of Colorado Gov. Jared Polis group in August, saying she felt misled.

“I donated to this recall to get it going and now I understand they are not going to be doing the recall,” wrote Brethauer, of Kersey. “I feel like I had been lied to and feel I no longer want to support this group in any way.”

The Secretary of State’s Office dismissed Brethauer’s claim later that month, saying the laws in Colorado don’t prevent an issue committee from deciding not to pursue a recall.

What could potentially land the group in trouble is how it spent the money it didn’t use on the recall effort. The Secretary of State’s Office can’t say whether any of these bonuses or charitable donations were legal or illegal without an investigation.