Trey Trainor, Commissioner of the Federal Election Commission (FEC), has a campaign sign for the U.S. Senator Ted Cruz in the front yard of his home.
On April 19, Trainor’s wife posted a picture on X/Twitter of the yard sign next to a statue of the Virgin Mary, which was reposted by Trey.
The post could be considered problematic, since Cruz is facing a campaign finance complaint for allegedly violating the federal campaign finance laws for his podcast gig with iHeartMedia.
Last month, the Campaign Legal Center and End Citizens United filed a complaint with the FEC alleging that Cruz may have improperly directed iHeartMedia to send more than $630,000 in advertising money to a PAC supporting his re-election to the U.S. Senate.
While FEC commissioners are allowed to display public support for a candidate, the yard sign could raise concerns about a government regulator with a bias in favor of Cruz.
“A lot of people would find that not in the spirit of being a nonpartisan entity but … it’s not a violation of the Hatch Act,” Brett Kappel, a campaign finance lawyer, told the Dallas Morning News. “It’s not against the ethical rules that are now in place for FEC commissioners.”
The FEC has six commissioners, who are appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate. No more than three commissioners can be from the same political party, making the institution as nonpartisan as possible, though they usually have worked in partisan roles.
The FEC chairman, Sean Cooksey previously worked for Cruz as deputy chief counsel from January to December 2018.
On the other hand, Trainor has made three contributions to Cruz’s Senate campaign in 2013, totaling $325.
Asked about the yard sign and whether Trainor would recuse himself from the Cruz complaint, an FEC spokesperson said Tuesday that Tainor “has no comment.”
Cruz is currently seeking a third term in the Senate, facing U.S. Rep. Colin Allred, D-Dallas for the seat.
He has been recently under fire for the payment from iHeartMedia to the Truth and Courage PAC, focused on “ensuring that Ted Cruz is re-elected to the United States Senate in 2024.” Recently, tax experts have said that the senator could owe taxes for that payment.
