Latest Spadea scam targets nation's seniors
A bombshell report has raised questions about the desperate fundraising tactics used by the longshot gubernatorial candidate.
A bombshell report released on Monday by Matt Friedman of POLITICO showed Bill Spadea soliciting donations nationwide, often from seniors who have not heard of him.
POLITICO contacted over a dozen small-dollar donors who frequently donated to Spadea and Elect Common Sense, per their campaign finance reports. Many were listed as retirees and as living outside of New Jersey and only two were aware that they were frequently making donations to Spadea
“It’s not unusual for donors to contribute to a campaign from outside of the state they reside in, as campaigns solicit donations from donors who gave to related causes and campaigns,” notes Friedman’s report, adding that in order to appeal to out-of-state donors, a fundraising plea often utilizes a more national message, and sometimes might not even mention the candidate in question.
It is not an illegal tactic, but it could be “very, very confusing to donors,” GOP digital strategist Eric Wilson tells politico.
Margaret McLendon, an 85-year-old retiree from Georgia donated six times to Spadea’s campaign since October, for a total of $590.
”I don’t understand it,” POLITICO is told by McLendon, who’s had a long career in Georgia’s Division of Family & Children Services. “It bothers me a lot. I don’t remember him … [I]t’s my personal money and my funds are limited. In fact, I’m totally out right now.”
Laurie Daiger, a 73-year-old who lives in Washington state, was confused as why she donated 20-plus times over the last year, totaling more than $1,000.
The recipient? Elect Common Sense, a PAC closely associated with Spadea. She only remembered donating to President Donald Trump’s campaign, not the New Jersey-based group that she had never heard of. After POLITICO contacted Daiger, she discovered that she had spent more than $4,000 on political donations to various campaigns.
“It made me feel like I don’t trust human beings anymore,” Daiger said. “It’s so dirty and rotten to do that.”
POLITICO notes that Elect Common Sense raised $934,000 in 2024, according to its year-end report filed with the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission. Its mission, according to its website, is to provide “support and financial backing to elect like-minded, Common Sense candidates in New Jersey from School Board to Governor.“ The investigation found that virtually all of the money it raised in 2024 went to its own operating expenses, especially fundraising. About $62,000 — roughly 7% of its 2024 spending — went to candidates or political organizations.
A 2023 report from Central Jersey Newswire previewed Elect Common Sense and Bill Spadea’s dubious fundraising tactics at the expense of Spadea’s self promotion:
A review of Elect Common Sense’s ELEC reports shows no such money was given to these candidates, sans $750 to the Bergen County Republican Organization and $250 to Bergen County Commissioner candidates Mary Guinchard and Aginshallah Collins, both of whom lost. For the rest of his endorsements, Bill suggests that he gave them airtime that was otherwise unattainable to them. That in and of itself falls flat when he, more than once a week, opened the phone lines to anyone running for elected office.
Folks associated with The New Jersey Project have also disclosed that in the previous cycle, Bill promised multiple candidates money, but when the time came to pay up, he wrote a check to no one. Nevertheless, Bill claimed ownership for over 400 local victories.
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