State audit: Ascencao misspent thousands on District 68 campaign

Board of Elections forwards audit findings to state attorney general

By Ted Hayes
Posted 2/15/19

Would-be House of Representatives District-68 winner Laufton Ascencao misspent thousands of dollars in campaign contributions and a private organization's funds during his successful campaign for the …

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State audit: Ascencao misspent thousands on District 68 campaign

Board of Elections forwards audit findings to state attorney general

Posted

Last year's would-be House of Representatives District-68 winner Laufton Ascencao misspent thousands of dollars in campaign contributions and a private organization's funds during his successful campaign for the seat last fall, failed to file proper paperwork and accepted donations well above the legal limit, a fiscal audit of his campaign revealed this week.

The audit was released by the State Board of Elections Friday morning and also concludes that Mr. Ascencao, who resigned his seat after financial improprieties were discovered by the Warren Democratic Town Committee last December, used nearly $2,800 in campaign funds on food, beverages, meals and travel expenses without saving receipts or accounting for the spending. It also alleges that he diverted thousands of dollars from the Sierra Club, of which he was Rhode Island chapter president, to his own campaign and to pay rent and expenses for the Rhode Island Working Families Party, of which he was a lobbyist and organizer.

Board of Elections Campaign Finance Director Richard Thornton forwarded the audit to the Rhode Island Attorney General's Office Thursday for further investigation.

Among the audit's findings:

* Six contributions totaling $1,900 were not itemized in campaign finance reports as required.
* Mr. Ascencao accepted total contributions of $2,000 from an individual, twice the amount allowed per year.
* Two contributions totaling $234.25 were not reported on campaign finances reports filed by Mr. Ascencao.
* Cash withdrawals and related fees totaling $945.75 had no supporting documentation.
* About $600 in campaign expenditures were not reported on campaign finance reports.
* Mr. Ascencao wrote $9,300 in unauthorized checks from the Sierra Club related to his campaign, and made unauthorized payments of $4,600 to the Rhode Island Working Families PAC for rent and expenses.

The news of Mr. Ascenao's alleged violations came as somewhat of a vindication for two of Mr. Ascenao's former opponents for the House District 68 seat, who havequestioned the money Mr. Ascencao raised last year, and how it was spent, for months.

William Hunt, a Libertarian candidate for the seat who filed a campaign finance complaint against Mr. Ascencao after the Warren allegations came to light in December, and Bristol Democrat Andy Tyska, who lost to Mr. Ascencao in last September's Democratic primary, both said Friday that the findings show not only the depth of Mr. Ascencao's wrongdoing but the extent to which PACs and other special interest groups help sway small local races like this:

"These things have been festering under the surface" for months, Mr. Hunt said. "It's not surprising. I've been beating around the bush with this, not having access to all the investigative powers that the state has, but I think there's more to this. I don't think this is the end of this.This is something that, with the special interest that are involved in these small elections, is really what the issue is."

Mr. Tyska has also raised questions about his opponent’s campaign, and said Friday that he is surprised at the extent of Mr. Ascenao's alleged breaches:

“I saw all the money, and where it was coming from, and where all the people were coming from, many of them from out of town, to support his candidacy.”

He warned voters it was a bad trend for local races. He reiterated that warning Friday, stating that voters, and candidates, should learn lessons from the Ascencao story.

“I think what’s important, looking forward, is the importance of questioning the tactics of other candidates who are receiving similar support, and what their candidacy is based on,” Mr. Tyska said.

Asked if he was surprised by what the state audit discovered, Mr. Tyska admitted he was: “Overall, I think campaign finance records are inappropriately weaponized, but I’m surprised, in this case, that it shows a true record of wrongdoing.”

After Mr. Ascencao resigned his seat, a host of candidates came forward to run for it, and a special election will be held on Tuesday, March 5. The candidates include Mr. Hunt, Independents James McCanna of Warren and Kenneth Marshall of Bristol, and Democrat June Speakman of Warren, a one-time ally of Mr. Ascencao's who first brought forward allegations of lies and campaign finance irregularities by Mr. Ascencao in December.

On Thursday night, Ms. Speakman released the following statement:

“We learned tonight that Laufton Ascencao’s deception went further than we initially thought," she wrote. "When the local Warren Democratic candidates discovered that the mailer and invoice that he had shown us in November were fake, we immediately filed a complaint with the Board of Elections; it’s clear that we made the right decision. Campaign Finance misuse and fraud have been a problem for far too many RI politicians -- even in the East Bay. We must demand more from political candidates and our elected officials to avoid these scandals that cause turmoil in our communities and distrust in our government.”

Mr. Ascencao did not return a message left on his cell phone Friday morning.

— With reports by Scott Pickering

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