Florida GOP Congressional Candidate Banned From Fundraising Platform WinRed for Pretending to be Trump and DeSantis

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WinRed is an online fundraising platform that has helped Republican candidates raise billions of dollars since launching in June 2019, but one Florida congressional candidate is now banned after he got caught impersonating more prominent Republicans like former President Donald Trump and Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL).

Erick Aguilar is a Navy veteran running in the GOP primary for Florida’s 4th congressional district, which includes most of Jacksonville and the surrounding suburbs plus St. Augustine. He has not been endorsed by either Trump or DeSantis. The governor’s endorsement seems highly unlikely to go to Aguilar; the Florida Republican establishment (both statewide and local) has been lining up behind former State Rep. Aaron Bean, who was viewed as a staunch DeSantis ally during his time in the state legislature.

As for the former president, he might be wooed by Aguilar’s support for his baseless claims of fraud in the 2020 election — Aguilar’s website declares he will “Strengthen ELECTION INTEGRITY! TRUMP WON!” and his Facebook and Twitter accounts promote conspiracy theories that the FBI was behind the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol — but that’s a far cry from the monomaniacal commitment Trump generally demands before he gives his stamp of approval.

The lack of endorsements from Trump and DeSantis didn’t stop newly-minted Florida man Aguilar from featuring their names in the fundraising emails he sent through WinRed.

But he didn’t just use their names.

Starting last November, Aguilar’s emails were drafted in a way that made it sound like they came from Trump, DeSantis, and other nationally-known Republicans, misleading readers into thinking they were donating to them instead of Aguilar, who was not even mentioned in the messages.

Politico Florida bureau chief Matt Dixon reported on the details of these emailed impersonations on Friday:

“Governor DeSantis is always fighting back against Corrupt Left,” read one email that came under a logo using DeSantis’ name. “No matter how bad this country is the Fake News media and Biden Admin are OBSESSED with that [sic] Florida is doing.”

It added: “It is time to help America’s #1 Governor. Can we count on you to support DeSantis?”

…Another batch of Aguilar’s emails look like they came from Trump and said the former president was leaving WinRed because “I have been at War with Big Tech!”

The email added: “Chip in $5 to Help President Trump CRUSH his monthly goal!”

Before WinRed excommunicated him, Dixon noted, Aguilar was able to raise hundreds of thousands of dollars, mostly from out-of-state, small-dollar donors, vastly surpassing the meager $15,000 he raised during his previous congressional campaign in 2020.

Out of the roughly $500,000 Aguilar raised in small donations, more than 95 percent came from contributors who listed their occupation as “retired.”

Politico contacted more than a dozen of his donors, and none of the ones who replied had any idea who Aguilar was, telling Dixon they believed their donations had gone to the Republicans Aguilar had impersonated.

“That’s kind of concerning,” said an Arkansas woman who donated nearly $500 in 20 individual donations she believed were going to DeSantis. “I had no paperwork on him [Aguilar], or anything like that.”

“I don’t know that name,” said an 88-year-old woman from Minnesota who nonetheless gave Aguilar over $1,000 via 30 payments on WinRed. “I, of course, give to President Trump and DeSantis, but that’s really it.”

Emails like the one quoted above claiming Trump was leaving WinRed raised red flags at the platform, two sources told Dixon, leading to an internal investigation. A WinRed spokesperson confirmed Aguilar’s suspension in an email to Politico.

“This account intentionally misled people by pretending to be, among other groups, Donald Trump, Ron Desantis and Jim Jordan,” said the emailed statement. “WinRed won’t let that happen, so several months ago we took action by shutting it down.”

Aguilar’s campaign declined to respond to Politico’s request for comment. Mediaite did find this inexplicable photo the candidate posted of himself standing on a beach wearing a full suit and tie and dress shoes, as weirdly inauthentic as emailing grandmothers to cajole them to contribute under false pretenses.

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