Let’s talk about Alderman Bob Donovan’s dirty laundry…

…and no, I’m not talking about his dirty socks; I’m talking about campaign finance shenanigans.

To say Milwaukee Alderman Bob Donovan (pictured, right) fascinates me would be an understatement. He’s a relic of a bygone era when aldermen ruled their districts like their own personal fiefdoms, and I’m amazed at how he’s been able to stay in his current office despite producing negligible improvements to the quality of life for many of his constituents.

Having said that, let’s talk about Bob Donovan’s campaign finance shenanigans (I really love that word, by the way. It’s almost as great as hijinks). A review of campaign finance documents filed by Donovan’s aldermanic campaign shows a number of…..

• Violations?
• Irregularities?
• Oddities?
• All of the above?
• None of the above?

So let’s start with contributions Bob Donovan’s aldermanic campaign received that exceeded legal campaign contribution limits.

Contributions to Bob Donovan’s Campaign That Exceeded Legal Limits (Starting with most recent and working backwards):

1. Bernard Bondar – Owner of Wolski’s – $400 YTD 2011 (10/16/2011)
2. John Finerty – Attorney at Friebert, Finerty, and St. John – $625 YTD 2011 (10/13/2011)
3. Mohinder Khahra – “Self-Employed” – $625 YTD 2011 (10/18/2011)
4. Joseph Sanfelippo – MKE County Supervisor – $400 YTD 2011 (10/13/2011)
5. Raeid Assad – Owner ABC Store – $550 YTD 2011 (2/22/2011)
6. Firefighters Local 225 – $307 on 4/8/8

According to Wisconsin State Statutes governing campaign contribution limits, specifically 11.26(1)(d), candidates for local office may not take campaign contributions exceeding an amount equal to the greater of the following:

“1. Two hundred fifty dollars,
2. One cent times the number of inhabitants of the jurisdiction or district, according to the latest federal census”

In Bob Donovan’s case, that means his campaign can accept campaign contributions up to a maximum of $381 for individuals and $286 for committees, meaning that based on the list of contributions above, Donovan’s campaign has accepted over $700 in campaign contributions that exceed legal limits. Interestingly enough, these campaign contributions that exceed legal limits aren’t isolated to 2011; a review of campaign finance records from previous years shows Donovan’s campaign has a tendency to accept excess contributions and then refund those excess contributions after the election cycle is over. From 2004 to 2008 Donovan’s campaign gave back over $4,000 in contributions that exceeded legal limits.

In addition to Bob Donovan’s campaign accepting contributions in excess of legal limits, his campaign has disbursed thousands of dollars to the law firm of Friebert, Finerty, and St. John, ostensibly to fight redistricting efforts affecting Bob Donovan’s district.

Possible Unallowable Expenditures:

• 12/09/11 – $4,978.04 to the law firm of Friebert, Finerty, and St. John

As I noted above, John Finerty of Friebert, Finerty, and St. John contributed $625 to Bob Donovan’s campaign in 2011, which would be $244 more than Donovan’s campaign could accept from Finerty for the cycle (see above). I’ve not been able to get a solid answer as to whether or not Bob Donovan’s campaign could legally use campaign funds to fight redistricting efforts that would impact the district he represents, but if the use of campaign funds for that purpose isn’t outright illegal, it certainly seems suspect, to say the least.