A new complaint accuses Orland Park Mayor Keith Pekau of improperly spending money from his mayoral campaign fund on his congressional bid.
Pekau bested five other candidates June 28 to win the Republican nomination to face incumbent Democratic 6th District Rep. Sean Casten of Downers Grove in the Nov. 8 midterm election.
End Citizens United, a political action committee that supports Democratic candidates, filed the complaint Oct. 5 with the Federal Election Commission. The complaint names Pekau, his congressional campaign fund and its treasurer, Orland Park Village Board member William Healy, as respondents.
“There is compelling evidence that Respondents have violated FEC regulations by improperly using funds from Mr. Pekau’s mayoral campaign committee to support Mr. Pekau’s federal campaign,” according to the complaint.
The complaint is based on public records that may be independently verified. Circumstantial evidence raises questions about why Pekau’s mayoral campaign spent significant sums on polling, consulting and other services shortly after Pekau won his second four-year term as mayor in April 2021.
“In total, Pekau’s mayoral committee spent at least $19,196.36 to support his congressional campaign,” according to the complaint.
Pekau’s campaign disputed the allegations.
“I am currently the mayor of Orland Park, and have been so since 2017,” Pekau’s campaign said Wednesday in a statement. “In that time, I have complied with all campaign laws and regulations, state and federal. This is a bogus politically motivated complaint.”
It is unusual for a mayoral campaign fund to spend significant amounts of money in the months following an election. Typically, campaign committees for mayors and other municipal officers spend nearly all their funds in the months leading up to elections.
During the months and years between elections, mayoral campaigns may report revenues from annual golf outings, individual contributions and other fundraising. Aside from routine expenses for office operations, fuel, meals and utilities, significant expenditures on campaigning outside normal election cycles are uncommon.
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The complaint describes in detail how Pekau’s mayoral campaign paid thousands of dollars after the mayoral election for telephone polling, signs, computer services, mailings, raffle prizes, advertising and consulting to two vendors: La Grange-based McPherson Public Affairs Group and Inverness-based COR Services.
Pekau formed his congressional campaign committee and publicly announced his bid for Congress in November 2021, according to the complaint. Yet quarterly campaign finance reports filed with the Illinois State Board of Elections list numerous expenses by Pekau’s Keith for Mayor committee for campaign services between July and October 2021.
Spending mayoral campaign funds on a congressional bid would violate the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, according to the complaint.
“We urge the Commission to immediately investigate these violations and levy appropriate sanctions against Respondents for their failure to comply with crucial and basic requirements of the Act and Commission regulations,” according to the complaint.
End Citizens United is a partisan group that supports campaign finance reform. The Washington, D.C.-based organization draws its name from a 2010 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that deregulated limits on certain types of campaign spending. End Citizens United has filed numerous FEC complaints, records showed.
Pekau’s congressional campaign fund, Pekau for Congress, has consistently paid the two vendors for election-related services throughout 2022, according to reports Pekau’s campaign filed with the FEC.
Representatives of the two vendors did not immediately respond Wednesday to requests for reactions to the complaint. Casten’s campaign responded to my inquiry with a statement.
“In 2019, Mayor Pekau was investigated for ethics violations for allegedly rigging bids to enrich himself on lucrative government contracts,” campaign spokesman Trevor Nyland said. “Now, he’s facing allegations that he has circumvented campaign finance laws that are put in place to protect our democracy. He’s made clear to voters that he can’t be trusted to hold public office.”
Last week, Pekau’s congressional campaign issued a statement that accused Casten’s campaign of misrepresenting Pekau’s position on abortion in an advertisement. Casten’s ad failed to include a required disclaimer and the ad had to be taken down, Pekau claimed.
“Disclaimers are one of the most basic aspects of producing a campaign ad, and his campaign left it off,” Pekau’s campaign said Oct. 4. “But then again, we are talking about a guy who uses his seat of power to enrich himself and his family, and took an illegal property tax break on his luxury D.C. condo. Ethical behavior is not his strong suit.”
Nyland disputed Pekau’s claims.
“In terms of the ad, it is not true that we were forced to take it down, and I’m not quite sure why Mayor Pekau keeps saying that,” he said. “The ad has never been off the air and is currently being run on both broadcast and cable. There was no formal complaint ever made against it.”
Pekau’s campaign repeated the unsubstantiated claim about the ad in its statement Wednesday.
“Once again Sean Casten and his political allies are lying about my record, just like they did in a campaign ad that he had to pull for an actual FEC violation,” the campaign said. “Sean Casten is lying because he can’t run on his record, since the people of IL-06 don’t want a congressman that supports policies like the SAFE-T Act and politicians like Kim Foxx, and voted for legislation that led to the highest inflation in 40 years.”
“He can’t attack my actual record because I have reduced crime and kept the people of Orland Park safe, while growing its economy,” Pekau’s campaign said.
Pekau’s response strays from issues relevant to a race for federal office, since the Safety, Accountability, Fairness and Equity-Today, or SAFE-T Act, is a state law that will end the use of cash bail on Jan. 1. Foxx is Cook County state’s attorney, who is responsible for prosecuting alleged violations of state and local laws.
A spokesman for the FEC verified the agency received a notarized copy of the complaint alleging misuse of funds by Pekau’s mayoral campaign but declined to say more, citing confidentiality protocols while complaints are investigated.
This is the first time an election for the 6th District congressional seat has included parts of the south and southwest suburbs. Illinois lost a seat in Congress after the 2020 census and legislators redrew boundaries for congressional districts.
In the June 28 Democratic primary Casten defeated Rep. Marie Newman, a first-term representative who bested former longtime 3rd District Rep. Dan Lipinski in the 2020 primary.
The 6th District previously extended north and west from Downers Grove but now reaches south and east from DuPage County to include all or parts of Evergreen Park, Oak Lawn, Chicago Ridge, Palos Heights, Oak Forest, Tinley Park and Orland Park.
Campaigns face imminent deadlines to file quarterly finance reports for the period ending Sept. 30, but as of Wednesday the most recent reports on file for Casten and Pekau were for the second quarter.
For the duration of the 2022 midterm campaign, Casten had raised $3.4 million, spent $3.2 million and had $574,339 cash on hand June 30. Pekau raised $437,222, spent $383,834 and had $53,387 cash on hand, FEC records showed.
Pundits generally expect Casten to prevail in November. Politico, considered a neutral media outlet, describes the race as “leans Democratic.” Real Clear Politics, a right-leaning outlet, called the race a “toss up” but noted President Joe Biden won the district with 56% of the vote in 2020 to Donald Trump’s 44%.
Ted Slowik is a columnist for the Daily Southtown.
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