C&E Newsletter: The Dem Strategists Betting on New Compliance Reporting Software
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1. Rethinking Dems’ Compliance Reporting Tools
A team of veteran Democratic strategists are rolling out what they hope will be the first real competitor to the compliance reporting software that has dominated Democratic politics for decades.
The new platform – dubbed Operative – is designed to be a streamlined alternative to NGP VAN’s widely used compliance reporting tools. The goal, according to one of Operative’s founders, isn’t to mimic all the features of NGP VAN’s software, but to give campaign compliance specialists a simpler platform to upload, clean and file their reports with the Federal Election Commission.
Operative is still in beta testing, said Pete Kavanaugh, one of the company’s founders. The company plans to open the software up to public adoption sometime in April – first for PACs and then, eventually, for campaigns and other committees.
“If you do a side-by-side comparison, NGP has a lot more bells and whistles,” Kavanaugh told C&E. “That’s great for some users, but we’re taking a very different approach, which is to simplify and streamline the entire compliance and reporting process. What we found in our research and testing is that users don’t want a tool that’s overly complicated when it doesn’t need to be – they want a reliable tool that is going to help them do their jobs more efficiently and effectively.”
Making Moves…
DNC Chair Ken Martin named Roger Lau as the committee’s new executive director. Lau, who previously served as campaign manager for Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s 2020 presidential bid, has served as the party’s deputy executive director since 2021.
“When we’re in the opposition party, the work of the DNC is more important than ever,” Lau said in a statement. “This team will leverage the vast infrastructure that we’ve built within the DNC and our state parties while meeting this moment by deepening our partnerships, strengthening grassroots organizing, and turbocharging messaging to win elections.”
2. Trump’s FEC
Democrats are asking a federal court to reaffirm the Federal Election Commission’s independence from Donald Trump as the president moves to assert new control over independent agencies within the executive branch.
The DNC, DSCC and DCCC filed a lawsuit on Friday arguing that a recent executive order giving the president more control over independent regulatory agencies puts the FEC at risk of being used as a cudgel against Trump’s political rivals. That executive order, signed by Trump last month, mandates that all executive branch officials – including those in independent agencies – “submit for review all proposed and final significant regulatory actions” to the Executive Office of the President.
“The issuance of the Executive Order has caused and will continue to cause Plaintiffs harm,” the lawsuit argues. “Plaintiffs remain chilled from seeking legal guidance from the FEC as long as it appears that the guidance will reflect the singular strategic aims of a political opponent – the head of the Republican Party.”
Trump has already moved to exert more control over the FEC. Last month, he sought to remove FEC Chair Ellen Weintraub from her post without first naming her replacement.
The Democrats’ full complaint can be found here.
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What We’re Reading
Dem Strategists Bet on New Compliance Reporting Software (C&E)
“Operative is an intended answer to years of frustration among some party operatives and compliance specialists, who say that NGP VAN’s compliance reporting tools have become overly complicated and somewhat clunky.”
Inside the Democratic Disaster That Didn’t Happen in November (The New York Times)
“This week, as a group of Democratic tech operatives gathered in Puerto Rico to discuss the future of data and technology for the party, the fate of the database system, called NGP VAN, was on the agenda. And on Wednesday, a group called the Movement Cooperative, a nonprofit that provides data and technology support to progressive groups, solicited proposals for the construction of a new voter data system that is being discussed as a possible alternative to NGP VAN.”
How Live Streaming Can Teach Political Professionals About Audience Engagement (Campaign Trend)
“The study found that the stronger a viewer’s sense of connection to a live streamer, the more likely they were to provide support—whether through emotional encouragement, practical assistance, or financial contributions. Viewers who developed a parasocial relationship—a one-sided bond where they saw the streamer as a friend—were even more likely to engage.”
Why This Year’s Hottest Election Is for a Wisconsin Court Seat (Axios)
“Although technically nonpartisan, the Wisconsin race — between Brad Schimel, a judge in Waukesha County and former GOP attorney general, and Susan Crawford, a Dane County judge – has become a proxy for national party figures seeking to exert their influence in a high-profile, off-year election. Roughly $30 million already has been spent on the race, which appears on pace to break – or at least rival – the record-breaking $50 million that was spent on the state’s Supreme Court race in 2023.”
GOP Divisions Emerge in Upcoming Marquee Races (The Hill)
“In Florida, first lady Casey DeSantis [is] mulling a gubernatorial bid as Rep. Byron Donalds launches his campaign with the support of President Trump. In Arizona, a full-fledged primary battle could play out in that state’s governor’s race between Trump-backed Karrin Taylor Robson and former House Freedom Caucus Chair Rep. Andy Biggs. And in Texas, Attorney General Ken Paxton is giving serious indications that he will challenge incumbent Sen. John Cornyn in the state’s Senate primary.”
