Complaint alleges flower shop’s $500K donation to pro-Suarez group violated laws

A campaign watchdog group is alleging a $500,000 donation to a super PAC backing Miami Mayor Francis Suarez’s (R) 2024 presidential bid may have violated campaign finance laws.

The Campaign Legal Center said in a complaint filed this week with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) that PassionForest, “an obscure, eleven-month-old company whose only known activity involved selling artificial flowers online,” purported to contribute $500,000 to SOS America PAC, the super PAC backing Suarez.

The complaint claims PassionForest did not have the funds to make such a large donation on its own. It alleges the company was part of a “straw donor” scheme meant to conceal the identities of the true contributors, violating campaign finance laws.

The complaint further alleges the donation may have been made under a false name “to conceal illegal contributions from foreign nationals, who are categorically prohibited from making political contributions.”

According to the filing, PassionForest was registered in Delaware and disclosed a Florida address, but the watchdog said other information suggests the company’s “principal place of business is in China, and that it may be owned and operated by one or more persons living in China.”

The complaint asks federal regulators to investigate the donation and “seek appropriate sanctions” for any violations found.

The super PAC told The Associated Press the complaint is an attack “intended to undercut the only Hispanic Republican candidate.”

The Hill has reached out to the super PAC and Suarez for comment.

The donation was reportedly made to SOS America when the group was operating under the name America for Everyone. The super PAC changed its name last month.

SOS America made headlines earlier this month when it offered donors the chance to win “a free year of college” if they donated $1 to Suarez’s campaign.

Suarez jumped into the 2024 GOP primary last month, becoming the third Florida resident in the Republican race, alongside former President Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R).