Investigators allege inflated ActBlue contributions tied to Wisconsin senior donors

Private investigators say many Wisconsin seniors appear to have donated far more to ActBlue than they actually did, a practice labeled “smurfing.”

Kyle Corrigan, leading Brightline Investigations, issued two reports—one in 2023 and another in 2025—detailing a “smurfing” operation that inflates donation records for Wisconsin seniors on the ActBlue platform. The analysis shows numerous seniors listed as making thousands of contributions totaling tens of thousands of dollars, despite many stating they never donated or only gave minimal amounts. Corrigan argues the pattern resembles identity theft and money-laundering tactics, noting prior tips to the Door County Sheriff’s Office were not pursued.

ActBlue did not respond to requests for comment. The findings were forwarded to Election Watch, Peter Bernegger, Daniel Eastman of the Wisconsin Center for Election Justice, Stephen Einhorn’s voter-integrity group, and former House senior counsel March Bell, who was then working with Congressman Bryan Steil on an ActBlue probe. Eastman warned the scheme could conceal out-of-state or foreign funding of Wisconsin candidates, while congressional hearings have already examined ActBlue’s handling of foreign contributions.