The complaint cited media reports and a now-deleted LinkedIn post made by Sofia Patel, the Labour Party’s operations head, saying that “nearly 100 Labour Party staff (current and former) going to the US in the next few weeks.”
The post mentioned that 10 more spots were still open for anyone who wanted to join and added “We will sort your housing” —which the Trump campaign’s complaint alleges is a sign that the Labour Party was “financially supporting” the trips.
U.K. Prime Minister and Labour Party leader Keir Starmer told reporters on Wednesday that “Labour party…volunteers, have gone over [to the U.S.] pretty much every election” and added that they were doing it in their “spare time and…as volunteers.”
The BBC reported that any Labour staffers who have traveled to the U.S. have “taken leave from their roles” and are funding the trip themselves.
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Key Background
Last week, billionaire Elon Musk—who is backing Trump's presidential bid—first boosted the issue on his social media platform X by sharing a screenshot of Patel’s LinkedIn post and wrote: “This is illegal.” Musk was later accused of deleting a “Community Note” under his post which pointed out that the FEC permits foreign nationals to serve as campaign volunteers. The FEC’s rules state that “an individual who is a foreign national may participate in campaign activities as an uncompensated volunteer.” The agency, however, prohibits foreign nationals from making any “contributions or expenditures” in connection with any U.S. election—federal, state, or local. Nigel Farage, the leader of the right-wing Reform U.K. party, also accused Labour of interference and said the move was “particularly stupid if Trump wins.” Farage has been a vocal supporter of Trump and even appeared at his campaign rallies in 2020 and 2016.
Chief Critic
The Trump campaign’s complaint added: “Those searching for foreign interference in our elections need to look no further than [the] LinkedIn post…The interference is occurring in plain sight.”
Crucial Quote
Starmer also downplayed concerns about the volunteering efforts impacting his government’s relations with the U.S. if Trump won, saying: “I spent time in New York with President Trump, had dinner with him and my purpose in doing that was to make sure that between the two of us we established a good relationship…We had a good, constructive discussion and, of course as prime minister of the United Kingdom I will work with whoever the American people return as their president.”
Tangent
In 2018, the FEC hit the Australian Labour Party with a $14,500 fine for breaching election rules concerning foreign funding. Several ALP delegates had volunteered for Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign and the agency found that the party broke rules by paying for their flights and other costs.
Further Reading
Starmer insists he can have a ‘good relationship’ with Trump despite election ‘interference’ claim (The Guardian)
