Axios: “A new political group in Virginia is taking pains to keep the people behind it a secret. And one candidate in the state’s gubernatorial race claims it is buying ads designed to falsely make it look like they’re coming from him. The group, dubbed the Patriot Leadership Trust, has succeeded in hiding the identities of its principals, depriving Virginians of information about the people and interests seeking to sway their votes in a bellwether off-year race.”

“The Patriot Leadership Trust has bought radio ads and direct mail pieces attacking Glenn Youngkin, a former private equity executive vying for the Republican nomination. Its latest direct mail piece, which attacked Youngkin over his ostensible support for the Southern Poverty Law Center, drew condemnation Wednesday from one of Youngkin’s rivals, Virginia’s former Republican House Speaker Kirk Cox. Cox accused the Patriot Leadership Trust of attempting to give the false impression that the attack came from his campaign, citing similarities in its name and mailing address to those of a PAC affiliated with Cox. ‘This is the latest in a series of attacks launched by shadowy PACs that are potentially violating the letter and spirit of Virginia’s campaign finance laws,’ Cox said in a statement. Cox was very clear the mail piece ‘is not coming from me, or anyone associated with me.’ Who it is coming from is less clear. The Patriot Leadership Trust was formed April 6. It won’t have to disclose its donors, paid staffers or consultants until July, more than two months after the nomination fight ends.”