Rhode Island
GoLocalProv | Politics | 5 Hours of Political Chaos in RI – Matos Campaign Rocked by Scandal
Friday, July 21, 2023
Sabina Matos at Friday’s press conference. PHOTO: GoLocal video
Sabina Matos’ campaign for Congress took another hit on Friday afternoon and, over a five-hour period, spiraled into political chaos.
The frontrunner for the vacant first Congressional seat is now facing an uncertain political future.
“The most charitable assessment of the press conference [held at 6 PM on Friday] is that Matos had no idea what was going on with the signature gathering process and played no role in orchestrating it, allowing it, or turning a blind eye to it,” said Jennifer Lawless, Chair of the Political Science Department at the University of Virginia.
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“But if that’s true, then it also means that she had no idea that her campaign appears to be in absolute shambles. She and the campaign admitted to (1) not vetting the firm they hired to do field work; (2) not Googling the name of the woman who collected the many fraudulent signatures; (3) not knowing how many people collected the signatures or how many hours they worked; (4) not conducting an internal investigation to figure out what happened; and (5) not reaching out to the police or the AG’s office,” Lawless said after watching the press conference via GoLocal.
“This entire ordeal happened not because one person dropped one ball. Many people dropped many balls. And based on the content of this press conference, there’s little reason to be confident that more balls won’t soon hit the ground,” added Lawless.
Board of Elections. PHOTO: GoLocal 5 Hours of Chaos
At a meeting of the Rhode Island Board of Elections on Friday — that was scheduled to begin at 2 PM and was delayed more for nearly two hours of waiting for the Board’s chair Diane Mederos to arrive and a for a closed session to be held — the Board finally announced that it voted to refer questions about the signatures submitted by the Matos campaign to the Rhode Island Attorney General’s office for review.
The Board requested in the referral that the Attorney General complete the review within 30 days.
“The fact that all of the signatures have been referred for review is bad news for the Matos campaign. This is not a situation where a handful of signatures in a few towns and municipalities are in question. Her entire candidacy is now in question,” said Lawless.
“The good news for her, of course, is that she will appear on the ballot as the investigation is underway. So she has a lifeline if she’s able to address the scandal effectively. But you can bet that between now and Election Day, this will be the first question she’s asked – by reporters, donors, voters, and volunteers,” said Lawless, who once ran for Congress in Rhode Islad as a Democrat. “This isn’t where you want to be 45 days out, especially given that other candidates will now have the potential to gain traction.”
The turmoil puts Matos’ campaign in a de facto state of suspended animation. Her campaign has not to have been found innocent or guilty. Rhode Island Secretary of State Greg Amore confirmed that Matos is on the ballot for the September primary.
Just hours after the Board of Elections meeting, the Matos campaign announced the 6 PM press conference.
Press Conference Chaos
“We don’t know what happened,” said Matos, in response to press questions about how a campaign vendor, identified as Holly McClaren, may have improperly submitted fake signatures — which is a criminal offense.
READ ABOUT MCCLAREN HERE
Matos was defensive, blamed the vendor, blamed her opponents, and took no responsibility for the errors.
At numerous points, Matos claimed that she – and her campaign – are the victims.
Matos repeatedly and defiantly said she was staying in the race and, at one point, shouted, “I am going to win.”
But the press conference featured her campaign manager Brexton Issacs repeatedly saying he did not know the answers to reporters’ questions. Brexton also served as Governor Dan McKee’s campaign manager.
The press conference went on for about 40 minutes, leaving reporters and the public with more questions than before it started.
The campaign claimed it had no contract with McClaren and could not provide details to the structure of the agreement. Issacs said that he fired her by email but said he had to check with legal counsel for the Matos campaign before releasing it.
How Will Matos’ Campaign Be Impacted?
The criminal investigation may potentially prove damaging to groups who have endorsed her. But, some organizations may stay the course.
“I can’t speak for any organization, but how Matos responds to the scandal is key to maintaining support. In the case of Emily’s List, they support pro-choice, female Democrats who are well-positioned to win. So, even if they were to pull back support – and I have no reason to think they will – it’s not like there’s an obvious alternative for them to support,” added Lawless
Who Does This Benefit Among Remaining Candidates?
“It’s hard to tell because there’s not an obvious second-place candidate right now. There’s a second tier of four or five candidates – including [Aaron] Regunberg – who were just handled a lifeline. But how they deploy that lifeline and whether they begin knocking down one another remains to be seen,” said Lawless.