Tennessee campaign finance official questions investigation by Attorney General’s office • Tennessee Lookout

The Attorney General’s Office report did not include an analysis or overview of whether the groups were acting as political action committees. It also included a letter informing the office that the Attorney General’s Office was not an “investigative body” and that it could explore other options if it was dissatisfied.

Members of both Constitutional Republican factions denied in interviews with the Attorney General’s Office that they raised or spent money as a political action committee. They said they acted solely as individuals in selecting and supporting candidates for political elections.

Chris Spencer, a co-founder of the Sumner County group and a candidate in the 18th Senate District, told a state investigator that the organization is not a PAC. When asked about refreshments for the monthly meetings, he replied, “I’m tired of questions. It’s a waste of time.”

Spencer is challenging incumbent Republican Sen. Ferrell Haile of Gallatin. Lawless would not say whether he believes the attorney general’s office is siding with Spencer with its weak report, but said he has spoken to staff members of Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti who told him the atmosphere is “so political that people are jumping ship.”

The attorney general’s office did not respond to questions from Lookout about the report or the politicization of the investigation.

Kurt Riley, one of the groups’ founders, insisted during the attorney general’s investigation that all money raised from the sale of Tennessee Constitutional Republicans merchandise goes to the group and “does not benefit any candidate on any platform.”

The Registry of Election Finance requested the investigation in response to an affidavit filed by Goodlettsville businessman Wes Duenkel, who alleged that the groups were acting as political action committees without registering with the state.

The Attorney General’s investigator found endorsements for political candidates on the websites of the Sumner County Constitutional Republicans and the Tennessee Constitutional Republicans, as well as a nine-member vetting committee that conducted background checks and held monthly meetings.

Riley, the group’s Sumner County chairman, had paid for the site, and the state investigator found that both websites contained a “donate” link that had been removed, according to the investigation.

Riley, also a registered representative for the Conservative Republicans in the US state of Tennessee, said he believes the groups are being “confused” with his former PAC, the Sumner County Republican Assembly, which is no longer active.

He claimed that the Sumner County group does not collect money as donations but accepts voluntary contributions to purchase breakfast for its monthly meetings.

In one case, a member of the Sumner County group wanted to hire a private investigator to vet a potential candidate and did so on his own, Riley told the investigator.

Duenkel filed the affidavit in January after discovering that the Sumner County Constitutional Republicans were supporting candidates for the county school board and recruiting people who shared their philosophy, in addition to offering “financial support” and advice on how to win elections. He also pointed out that the group hosted election parties with food and drinks on election night, and noted that the group’s Facebook page featured a video of actor and celebrity Kirk Cameron promoting the group.

In his November 2023 complaint, Duenkel alleged that the two groups qualified as a “multi-candidate political action committee” because they made expenditures to support or oppose two or more candidates for public office or two or more measures in an election with referendums.

In his filing, he provided documents showing that Riley said one of the groups had existed since 2018 and had sent out fundraising appeals since its inception. He also said it had spent “an incredible amount of time promoting conservatism” by designing stickers and other merchandise and hiring private investigators to vet candidates.

Sumner County Constitutional Republicans have endorsed Todd Kerr, Marie Mobley, Tracy Finegan, Timothy Crowder and Josh Graham for school board seats this year, in addition to Spencer for the 18th Senate District and General Sessions Judge Russ Edwards.

The group is an opponent of Haile, a Republican from Gallatin, and has sent out mailers showing that pharmaceutical companies and medical groups have donated to his campaign.

She rose to prominence in Sumner County politics in recent years, supporting 14 of 17 county commissioners who won the 2022 election and endorsing winning school board candidates. She also advocated for removing books from school libraries and pushed for a vote to include the words “Judeo-Christian” in a guiding document for the work of the Sumner County Commission.