Congresswoman Tenney's Statement on Wisconsin Findings that 'Zuckerbucks' Broke State Bribery Laws

Washington, DC – Congresswoman Claudia Tenney (NY-22), co-chair of the House Election Integrity Caucus, today released the following statement in response to a report issued by a state-appointed special counsel in Wisconsin, which found that $9 million given by Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg to local boards of elections violated state bribery laws.

“The findings released today in Wisconsin by a state-appointed special counsel expose Zuckerbucks for exactly what they are: a shady and corrupt influence operation designed to undermine free and fair elections. In particular, the special counsel determined that the funding provided by Mark Zuckerberg and funneled through a liberal non-profit to Democrat-leaning counties violated the state’s anti-bribery laws," Tenney said.

“States around the country that have not yet banned Zuckerbucks from future elections must act now to save our elections and protect the democratic process from being sold to the highest bidder. I am continuing to fight as co-chair of the House Election Integrity Caucus to ensure my End Zuckerbucks Act is passed to prevent non-profits from engaging in this corrupt practice in the future.”

In the 2020 election, Mark Zuckerberg used a non-profit organization called the Center for Tech and Civic Life (CTCL) to shell out $350 million to local boards of elections to provide safety protocols to voting sites. Unfortunately, the majority of this money was funneled in a partisan manner to Democrat-leaning counties or election precincts. The money was provided with little-to-no oversight on spending, and reports indicate it was used to fund advertising, vehicle purchases, and other activities unrelated to the pandemic.

An investigation conducted last year by Tenney's office revealed that of the $144.2 million spent by CTCL in the states of Texas, Ohio, Nevada, Minnesota, Georgia, Florida, Arizona, and Pennsylvania during the 2020 election, 90 percent went to Democrat-leaning counties won by Joe Biden, while only 10 percent went to right-leaning counties that voted for Donald Trump.

Congresswoman Claudia Tenney introduced the End Zuckerbucks Act last year to bar private organizations from providing direct funding to official election organizations. In Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis has proposed similar legislation to eliminate the practice and secure election integrity.

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