LANSING, Mich. (Michigan News Source) – When the state of Michigan enshrined the right to an abortion in the state’s constitution, numerous donors, including former executives of the cryptocurrency exchange FTX, who also have donated to numerous Michigan campaigns provided donations to spur their efforts.
On Tuesday, Nishad Singh, former director and engineering head of FTX, pleaded guilty to numerous federal charges that resulted in bankrupting the company, several million once held by FTX were spent on the Proposal 3 campaign according to the Detroit Free Press.
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A report by USA TODAY, revealed that Singh, and other FTX executives donated nearly $80 million to political candidates and other advocacy groups, several million went towards the ballot committee Reproductive Freedom For All (RFFA), the lead proponent of the Prop 3 campaign.
A finance statement filed by the coalition RFFA which includes Michigan Voices, American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan, and Planned Parenthood of Michigan, revealed that there was a balance of $965,000 in its account from statement year 2022, since raising more than $45 million during the election cycle.
As the company has new management and continues the process handling bankruptcy hearings, recipients of funding from FTX could be asked to return the money, and candidates who did not return funds could potentially be sued according to FTX, adding that politicians who donated the funds to charities were not exempt from the requests.
Additionally, Governor Gretchen Whitmer was given the maximum individual contribution a candidate could receive, $7,150, from Singh for her reelection campaign. A spokesperson for the governor’s office said that the donation was unsolicited, removed, and is being held in escrow “until further notice.”
Numerous candidates in the Michigan Legislature during the 2021-2022 election cycle received donations from Singh according to the Federal Election Commission including: Senator Gary Peters (D-Bloomfield Township), Representative Elissa Slotkin (D-Lansing), Representative Debbie Dingell (D-Dearborn), Representative Dan Kildee (D-Flint), and a single Republican Congressional Candidate, John Gibbs received a donation. Retiring Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-Lansing) also received funding from the former FTX executive.
Singh faced six criminal charges, including one count of conspiracy to make illegal political contributions, one count of money laundering, one count of wire fraud, and three counts of conspiracy to commit wire fraud according to a complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.
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