District Court issues opinion in Common Cause Georgia, et al. v. FEC

WASHINGTON – The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia has issued a Memorandum Opinion and Order in Common Cause Georgia, et al. v. FEC (Case No. 22-3067), granting both parties’ cross-motions for summary judgment in part and denying both motions in part.

Plaintiffs had challenged the Commission’s 2022 dismissal of an administrative complaint filed by Common Cause Georgia that alleged that True the Vote, a nonprofit corporation, had made and the Georgia Republican Party had accepted prohibited corporate contributions and that the party had violated the disclosure requirements of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as amended (the Act), in connection with the 2021 Senate runoff election in Georgia.

The Court declared Friday that the Commission’s failure to find reason to believe that the Georgia Republican Party failed to report certain receipts and disbursements was contrary to law and ordered the Commission to conform with the Court’s declaration within 30 days. The Court further held that Plaintiffs lack standing to challenge the Commission’s failure to find reason to believe the allegations regarding prohibited corporate contributions.