The Republican Governors Association is denying claims that a pro-Sarah Palin mailer violated state law.
Outside groups are generally barred from participating in Alaska elections during the final 30 days before an election, said Brooke Miles, executive director of the Alaska Public Offices Commiss-ion, which regulates campaign spending in the state.
The campaign staff of Palin's opponent, Democrat Tony Knowles, has complained publicly about what it called an illegal Outside attempt to influence an Alaska election and tried to link the attempt to Palin, who has denied any illegal coordination.
The governors association blamed slow mail service in Alaska for a mailer that arrived in at least some Alaska mailboxes as late as Oct. 26.
"I'm guessing that especially in Alaska it can take a while to get mail," said Charlie Spies, general counsel for the RGA.
Spies said the color postcard featuring Palin was mailed in the Washington, D.C., area on Oct. 6, more than 30 days before the Nov. 7 election.
"And we can prove it if we have to," he said.
Spies declined to provide proof to the Empire, saying that could tip off the Knowles campaign to Republican strategy.
The RGA may indeed have to prove it. The Alaska Democratic Party said Thursday it intends to file a complaint with the commission, and Miles of APOC already has said the postcard appears to violate Alaska law. The commission could hear a request for an expedited hearing on the matter as soon as next Tuesday, when it already has a meeting scheduled.
Spies said the mailing was legal because the postcard was mailed prior to the deadline. In a letter to APOC, Spies said Miles' judgment that it was illegal because it arrived after the deadline was wrong.
"Anyone who has dealt with the often lengthy delivery delays by the United States Postal Service knows that such a standard would be nonsensical," he said in a letter to APOC.
Miles said she received the RGA response today.
"APOC disagrees with Mr. Spies," she said.
Because presorted, bulk mail coming from out of state might take three weeks or more to arrive in Alaska mailboxes, a law that only barred mailings after the 30-day deadline would have no practical effect.
On Thursday Spies also denied Knowles' claims that the Republican Governors Association had significant links to disgraced former lobbyist Jack Abramoff.
An Abramoff company, Capitol Campaign Strategies, made a relatively small contribution to the RGA several years ago, he acknowledged. That contribution was not significant to an organization that has a multi-million budget for this year alone, Spies said.
Capitol Campaign Strategies contributed $500,000 to the RGA in October, 2002, though the contribution was not disclosed until March 2004 when the group amended its Federal Election Commission filings. In January 2006 RGA head Gov. Mitt Romney said the association would contribute a similar amount of money to the American Red Cross for hurricane relief.
