Augusta, Maine — Bobby Charles’ campaign is officially being held accountable. The Maine Commission on Governmental Ethics and Election Practices has scheduled an October 26 hearing on the Maine Democratic Party’s complaint detailing campaign finance violations by the Charles campaign.

After reviewing Charles’ campaign contributions, the Maine Democratic Party identified 46 contributions totaling more than $25,000 above Maine’s $2,075 contribution limit.

The Commission has ordered the Charles campaign to return the illegal contributions by October 14 and submit a written response by Friday, October 16.

And the Commission is making it clear that sending the money back does not get Bobby Charles off the hook. In a letter to the Charles campaign, Commission Executive Director Jonathan Wayne warned that the campaign’s compliance with the deadlines “will not necessarily rule out finding of violations or penalties.”

Statement from Maine Democratic Party Spokesperson Lauryn Fanguen:

“The Ethics Commission is holding Bobby Charles accountable for campaign finance violations. The Charles campaign would not have returned these funds if we hadn’t called them out. Now they have to answer to the Ethics Commission and potentially face penalties. If Bobby Charles can’t follow Maine’s campaign finance laws as a candidate, Mainers have every right to question why they should trust him to follow the law as governor.”