My concern with a 17 year-old soliciting campaign funds so he can run and campaign for Mayor of Sheboygan is this;
People are donating money for Asher through his website. This is the same kid that was soliciting money from people through his website, for his college fund.
Not only that, what will happen to all of the money people have donated if the recall is a flop? Will Asher refund the money or will he have already spent it?
There is a rumor that more people signed the recall papers numerous times and some with fictitious names. What if people signed the recall papers and they don’t even live in the city? The recall wasn’t run like any other. The volunteers didn’t go door-to-door, but stood by the Farmer’s Market, street corners and the residential waste site.
What verification did the volunteers require before people could sign the recall paper?
These are valid concerns that people should be thinking about and asking before donating to a campaign of someone that doesn’t even know if there will even be a recall election.
If he is accepting donations for a political office he should be registered with the city as a PAC or their is a slightly different name if he is actually running but same thing. In that case the law is very clear about how much money you can accept from an individual )I think $700 but ti's been a long time) your accounting practices and how the money is spent.
ReplyDeleteAsher Heimermann has filed the necessary paperwork to run for the Office of Mayor, that includes fundraising. By law, Asher is to report those donations to the City Clerk's Office.
ReplyDeleteAccording to his campaign website (http://www.asherheimermann.org), "Contributions to Heimermann for Sheboygan are not tax deductible. Corporate contributions are not accepted. We may accept contributions from an individual totaling up to $490 per election."
Since he is raising funds for a mayoral campaign, he can only spend the money on political related matters. If the recall election is not called, the money can be refunded or held for the 2013 mayoral election or he can transfer the money to another political account. But he is not required to refund any money, if he so wants.
I also want to note that Asher also has to list where the money is and where it went. So don't worry about that. I donated $25 and I plan to donate another $50 in a week. I believe in his vision for Sheboygan.