Tennessee

U.S. Rep Andy Ogles has paid a $5,750 civil penalty for multiple campaign finance violations incurred during the 2021-2022 election cycle, an FEC spokesperson confirmed. The commission agreed to the fine in early October after assessing Ogles’ campaign with multiple penalties for missing and late-filed reports, illegal contributions and insufficient reporting documents.

The Ogles campaign blamed its compliance issues on “internal miscommunication,” according to the publicly released settlement terms. In addition to the fine, Ogles’ campaign has until Jan. 2 to set up a specific tracking and reporting process with the FEC and must undergo additional training with the FEC by October.

An FEC audit from March found more than 10 campaign finance violations from Ogles’ 2022 campaign. The report details $90,000 in unreported receipts from October 2022 and an undisclosed $50,000 transfer between political committees. Letters from the FEC also name former Ogles treasurer Lee Beaman and Thomas Datwyler, a Wisconsin-based compliance consultant associated with multiple instances of improper bookkeeping for Republican candidates across the country.

Elected mayor of Maury County in 2018, Ogles built a reputation among Tennessee’s far right by opposing COVID precautions and gun control. Last year, Ogles won the Republican nomination for Tennessee’s 5th Congressional District over former speaker of the Tennessee House Beth Harwell and retired National Guard Brig. Gen. Kurt Winstead, both viewed as moderate alternatives to Ogles. In November 2022, he comfortably beat Democratic state Sen. Heidi Campbell, for the seat. The district previously contained all of Davidson County and was represented by centrist Democrat Jim Cooper before state lawmakers split up Nashville into three congressional districts.

Many of the professional and personal details shared by Ogles during his campaign were reported by NewsChannel5’s Phil Williams to be exaggerations and embellishments soon after he was sworn in as a congressman, prompting comparisons between Ogles and now-ousted GOP Rep. George Santos.

Ogles’ office did not respond to a request for comment.