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The Georgia Secretary of State’s office has launched an investigation into a charity linked to two-time failed Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams following a bombshell report last month alleging improprieties surrounding finances.
The Washington Free Beacon was first to report on the allegations and on Monday, followed up the initial report to note that Georgia election officials are now conducting an investigation.
“Georgia’s secretary of state has opened an investigation into ‘financial irregularities’ surrounding the New Georgia Project, a voting-rights charity founded by Stacey Abrams, individuals familiar with the matter,” told the outlet, according to the Monday report.
The outlet noted that the New Georgia Project is facing investigations into alleged financial mismanagement by former executives, following reports by the Free Beacon. The organization’s latest tax filings have also raised legal and accounting questions, prompting authorities to issue subpoenas to affiliated parties.
After being founded by Abrams in 2013, the New Georgia Project became one of the leading voter registration groups in the country. Between the New Georgia Project and its affiliated New Georgia Project Action Fund, they have raised a combined total of $54.7 million since 2020.
The Free Beacon uncovered several inconsistencies in the financial disclosures of the New Georgia Project, the outlet noted. The discrepancies include a payment of half a million dollars for consulting services to a charity that is partly run by the brother of Nsé Ufot, the former CEO of the New Georgia Project who was terminated for undisclosed reasons.
Furthermore, the New Georgia Project claimed that it did not pay any payroll taxes in 2020, which is highly unlikely without engaging in extensive criminal activities. The Georgia attorney general’s spokesperson declined to comment on the matter.
A long-running case by the Georgia Government Transparency and Campaign Finance Commission has alleged that the voter registration group worked illegally to elect Abrams during her unsuccessful 2018 gubernatorial bid. Georgia’s Secretary of State initiated an investigation into the charity in light of this separate case, the Free Beacon reported, adding:
Abrams, who lost her second gubernatorial bid by 7.5 points in November, said in January that she will “likely run again.” Abrams raised more than $100 million during her last campaign, largely from liberal donors outside of Georgia. Despite that exorbitant sum, Abrams’s campaign owes more than $1 million to vendors, according to a report from Axios.
Earlier, the outlet reported that the New Georgia Project submitted its 2021 Form 990 financial disclosure in January to the IRS, two months after the due date, and three months after Nse Ufot, the CEO hand-picked by Abrams, was fired by the charity’s board chairman.
The financial disclosure revealed a $533,846 consulting payment and a $67,500 grant to the Black Male Initiative, an obscure charity partially run by Ufot’s brother, Edima, who was a former employee of the New Georgia Project. However, the Black Male Initiative has denied receiving any consulting payment and provided the outlet with its IRS financial disclosures, showing no income from consulting and only $255,000 in contributions from all sources in 2021.
The missing money has raised ethical concerns, adding to the challenges facing the troubled charity. Earlier in November, the Free Beacon reported that the New Georgia Project was in turmoil as former senior staff accused the leadership of engaging in widespread financial misconduct. Furthermore, Georgia’s state ethics commission has alleged that the group unlawfully worked to elect Abrams during her unsuccessful 2018 gubernatorial campaign against current Gov. Brian Kemp, a Republican.
“This is something that the Internal Revenue Service should be interested in, particularly with the added element of the former officer possibly pocketing the money,” Alan Dye, a nonprofit attorney, told the outlet.
“Something’s rotten in the state of Denmark,” he said, noting further that it’s a crime to file a false statement knowingly with the federal government, per the Free Beacon.
The organization, along with its affiliated New Georgia Project Action Fund, has been among the largest left-leaning voter registration efforts in the nation, raising a total of $54.7 million since 2020.
