Illegal Campaign Coordination Election Complaint Filed with NH AG

CONCORD, NH —A Queen City radio talk show hosts wants to know if it was collusion or a coincidence that an independent political mailer by a children’s advocacy organization, mailed from the address of New Hampshire’s highest paid lobbying firm, endorsed candidates for governor that were supported by the partners at the firm, one, who works for one of the candidates, according to a post online.

Rich Girard, the host of Girard at Large, filed a complaint with the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office on Sept. 2, 2016, requesting an investigation of "what appears to be illegal campaign coordination" after he received mailers from Save the Children Network at his home endorsing Republican gubernatorial candidate Jeanie Forrester and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Colin Van Ostern. The mailers cost more than $305,000, according to a filing with the Secretary of State’s Office and were sent six and 12 days after Save the Children endorsed both candidates. The mailer also claims to be an independent political expenditure and had the following disclaimer: “Paid for by Save the Children Action Network. Not Authorized by Any Candidate or Candidate Committee.”

However, accordingly to the complaint, the mailer was also sent from the same address as the firm of Dennehy & Bouley, 17 Depot St., Suite 3, in Concord. Mike Dennehy, a partner at the firm and a well-known political consultant, is working for Forrester; Jim Bouley, another partner at the firm, has endorsed Van Ostern and also donated money to his campaign. Bouley is also a registered lobbyist for Save the Children, according to the state. The org also reportedly rents space inside the firm's office.

Dennehy & Bouley, according to a report in the Nashua Telegraph last year, are believed to be the most well-paid lobbying firm in the state, raking in more than $1 million in 2014 to influence legislation on behalf of their clients.

In his filing, Girard also noted that last month Dennehy was touting an internal Forrester campaign poll that showed her in second place. According to WMUR-TV, he refused to identify the pollster. In Forrester’s campaign finance report filing, no polling expenditures were noted, Girard stated. However, Save the Children Network, according to its filing, paid more than $50,000 for a research survey of the race.

“With all this, it would seem to strain credulity to believe that the Forrester and Van Ostern campaigns are acting independently of the Save the Children Action Network,” Girard wrote in his complaint to the attorney general. “Are we to believe that Mr. Dennehy, a paid consultant of the Forrester campaign and Mayor Bouley, a public supporter of the Van Ostern campaign, whose firm has been retained by the Save the Children Action Network that lists their firm’s address as their own, are somehow not aware of their own activities and, therefore, not violating the statute prohibiting campaign coordination? Mr. Dennehy’s action in leaking an internal primary poll to the media, despite his candidate not having paid for any polling, certainly calls into question whether or not he is illegally using information from his other client, Save the Children Action Network, which, of course, is supporting the gubernatorial candidacy that has him on the payroll.”

Girard said he believed the activity violated NH RSA 664:2 Part XI which bans interactivity between candidates, authorized committees, or agents of candidates or committees.

Dennehy offered no comment about the complaint when reached by Patch. Bouley did not respond to a request for comment before this post was published. Matt Trojan from the Van Ostern’s campaign also did not return an email before publication.

Brendan Daly, a spokesman for Save the Children Action Network, called the complaint “frivolous” and “without merit,” adding the org strictly followed all of New Hampshire’s campaign finance laws.

“We sent surveys to all the candidates and after carefully reviewing the answers from the candidates who responded, decided to endorse Colin Van Ostern and Jeanie Forrester in their respective primaries because they are the strongest candidates supporting early education in each race,” he said in an email. "(State) Sen. Jeanie Forrester is the only Republican in the race who will stand up for investments in high-quality early childhood education. Her plan to involve the business community in early education is innovative and part of a broader strategy to fight New Hampshire’s heroin and opioid epidemic. And we believe that Colin Van Ostern is the strongest Democratic candidate with the most detailed plan and commitment to early education. He understands that investing in early childhood education is the best way that New Hampshire can close the growing opportunity gap that plagues the state and the nation. SCAN is committed to working in a bipartisan way to achieve increased access to high-quality early education in New Hampshire, which is why we support Jeanie Forrester and Colin Van Ostern.”

Read the full complaint with exhibits and links at girardatlarge.com.