Seven days after the filing deadline, Tennessee 5th Congressional District candidate Andy Ogles has failed to file a campaign finance report.
The FEC second-quarter filing deadline for the reporting period covering April 1 through June 30 was July 15.
Ogles remains the only candidate who has not disclosed his campaign finances in compliance with FEC regulations and federal law.
It was believed by many political observers, sources say, that Ogles filed his initial political action committee organizational paperwork with the FEC after the March 31 first-quarter reporting period deadline in an effort to have a full quarter of fundraising activity before he was legally required to file a campaign finance report.
Many sources, including those close to the Ogles campaign, are baffled as to why a finance report still has not been filed, given the three months of campaign activity and the amount of time Ogles had to file the report.
The Tennesse Star previously reported that Ogles has repeatedly told The Star that there had been issues retrieving bank records and those issues are the culprit behind his failure to file the required financial reports.
At an event last Saturday, Ogles told The Star that he would probably file his report this Monday, July 18.
On July 18, The Star was told on at least two occasions that the report would be filed the following day.
Sources again said that the Ogles campaign reportedly told other individuals in several different conversations that the finance report was filed yesterday, is about to be filed, or will be filed “tomorrow afternoon.”
One political observer said that “it is probable that Ogles didn’t raise what he publicly claimed he raised or he didn’t do so in the manner that he previously claimed.”
“If he didn’t raise what he claimed, he’s probably delaying so the Club for Growth-affiliated ads propping up his bid and attacking his opponents don’t stop. You make certain representations of your campaign’s financial viability when you receive backing like that and those groups don’t like being misled,” said one political observer familiar with the TN-5 race on the condition of background. “Ogles can’t claim ignorance of the ads because he’s publicly stated that Club for Growth was backing him.”
The Star previously reported that Ogles claimed in May that he raised $453,000 during the first month of his candidacy to secure the Republican nomination in Tennessee’s 5th Congressional District.
The Tennessee Journal reported on May 11 that the Ogles campaign said that “none of his fundraising total came in the form of loans and that all contributions were from within Tennessee.”
If Ogles does file a campaign finance report, that report could conceivably conflict with previous claims he made about his campaign monetary activity.
The FEC pre-primary campaign finance report is due on Saturday.
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Aaron Gulbransen is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Email tips to [email protected]. Follow Aaron on GETTR, Twitter, Truth Social, and Parler.
Photo “Andy Ogles” by Andy Ogles.
being cute and clever by leveraging his report, is not in keeping with any ethical standards valued here in TN. Donors should request a refund. Vote Jeff Beierlein (sp)
Debbie, conservatives can’t afford to waste votes on No Record/No Chance candidates. The only one who can prevent Gen. Weathervane from being our next congressman is Beth Harwell.
An empty-suit Koch puppet.
Andy’s un-campaign becomes more and more of an embarrassment as time goes by. What a fiasco! I only pray that it doesn’t result in the election of Gen. Weathervane by splitting the conservative voter. VOTE HARWELL!
That line might work in the country clubs, but anyone outside the gates knows Ogles is the real conservative in this race that can win.
With all the ridiculous attacks on Ogles tells me and other voters that the other candidates fear Ogles and know he is the people’s choice. This crap only makes the other candidates look bad not Ogles. Seems like Ogles is over the target and the others are in fear for their losing campaigns.
Ms. Tilley, if Andy does not soon make that Federal Election Commission filing, Michael Patrick Leahy will have a heart attack. Personally, like you, I’d like for Leahy to ‘give it a rest’ but he just won’t listen. Ogles knows what he’s doing. Can you imagine Eisenhower putting an ad in the London Times a few days before notifying Rommel that we’re landing on June 6, at five beaches in Normandy, etc.? Me neither. Sometimes that is just the way that the ‘game’ has to be played.