Ethics complaints filed by the founders of an online legislation tracking and analysis firm against Arkansas’ attorney general and his campaign manager were dismissed by the Arkansas Ethics Commission Thursday.
Janie Ginocchio, one of the founders of the Tracking Arkansas Substack, filed the 29-page complaint with the commission in September, alleging that Republicans Attorney General Tim Griffin, Rep. David Ray of Maumelle and their respective political action committees, as well as the PAC of Sen. Ben Gilmore of Crossett, “repeatedly and willfully violated” campaign finance laws.
Ray is also Griffin’s campaign manager.
“I appreciate the Ethics Commission for their thorough and professional handling of this matter, and I am pleased they dismissed all of the complaints against me, all of which were frivolous, false, and part of a politically-motivated stunt,” Griffin said in a text message.
Ray and Griffin confirmed that all of the complaints filed by Ginocchio had been dismissed. The commission did not respond to messages from the Advocate Friday.
“As I’ve said from the beginning, these complaints were the dumbest thing I’d ever read. They were frivolous, politically motivated, and not worth the paper they were written on,” Ray wrote in a text message. “Frivolous complaints like these waste taxpayer resources and attempt to weaponize a government agency in an effort to smear the character of good people.”
The complaint alleged that the men and the PACs skirted caps on campaign contributions and violated prohibitions on indirect campaign contributions, the use of public property for campaign purposes and receiving outside payment for carrying out official duties. It also claimed that the PACs controlled by the men and Gilmore Strategy Group, which is owned by Gilmore’s brother, Jon Gilmore, “worked in concert” to conceal the source of Griffin’s campaign funds as well.
The complaints against Ben Gilmore’s PAC and his brother’s firm were dismissed by the commission last month, according to the Tracking Arkansas Substack.
Ray, who was elected to the House in 2020, was paid by Griffin’s campaign while the Legislature was in session in 2023 and 2025, according to Ginocchio’s complaint and Griffin’s campaign finance reports. He introduced several bills that would have affected the attorney general’s authority during that period.
Ginocchio’s complaint said Griffin’s PAC violated ethics laws by using a vehicle owned by the attorney general’s office for campaign purposes. That, and the campaign salary payments to a sitting legislator, created “a severe conflict of interest and the appearance of quid pro quo,” the complaint said.
Griffin’s Jobs and Growth PAC reimbursed the state for mileage related to the use of the vehicle on at least one occasion, according to the complaint.
Ginocchio said in an emailed statement that “the system is broken” and that Tracking Arkansas would advocate for changes to campaign finance laws.
“Sen. Jimmy Hickey has already vowed to introduce legislation in 2027 to prevent elected officials from controlling PACs. We support that bill,” Ginocchio wrote. “We also support a complete overhaul of Arkansas’s campaign finance laws and a complete overhaul of the Ethics Commission itself.”
Ginocchio also filed ethics complaints against Secretary of State Cole Jester and Lt. Gov. Leslie Rutledge, who are both Republicans. Those complaints were dismissed last year.
For more original state wide reporting visit the ArkansasAdvocate.com
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