Donald Trump’s press secretary raised zero money last quarter to shrink the $326,000 in debt her campaign owes after her doomed 2022 bid for the House.
Karoline Leavitt, now 28, was 23 when she launched a New Hampshire run that ended in a humiliating 8-point loss to Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas. She has since stepped into the White House at Trump’s side, becoming the youngest press secretary on record.
The bulk of what “Karoline for Congress” owes, north of $210,000 of the roughly $326,370 shortfall, is money it must return to backers whose donations sailed past federal caps, NOTUS reported Wednesday, citing fresh federal filings released earlier this week.
Election rules dictate that when a campaign takes an over-the-limit check, “the committee must not spend the funds.” Her committee logged zero cash in its account for the second quarter of this year, leaving no way to write any refunds. Leavitt may legally fundraise to clear the tab but has brought in nothing toward it, the outlet noted.
The Daily Beast previously reported that the shortfall is divided among upward of 100 creditors. Those still awaiting their money include former New Hampshire Gov. Craig Benson and the late state Senate leader Robert Clegg, Jr. Vendors are owed as well—$46,747 to consulting shop Axiom Strategies, and another $41,000 to pollster Remington Research Group.
The campaign did cut refund checks to five creditors in January. They included Leavitt’s own parents, who each pocketed $2,900.
The books have drawn fire before. Watchdog End Citizens United’s November 2022 complaint to the Federal Election Commission targeted those same over-the-limit gifts. The case sits frozen because the commission dropped below the member count it needs for decisions to be valid in May last year and can therefore no longer levy penalties.
Trump put forward two Republican nominees in February, though the Senate has scheduled no hearings on the picks. Once it reopens, the agency will also face a pileup of over 250 unresolved cases, Democratic chair Shana Broussard wrote on Bluesky last month.
The Daily Beast has contacted the White House for comment on this story.
