Republican Mississippi Congressman Steven Palazzo of the 4th Congressional District is under investigation by the Office of Congressional Ethics for reported misuse of campaign funds, Roll Call reports.
Entering his sixth term, Palazzo allegedly received $60,000 from his campaign to rent a farm he owns in Perkinston, Mississippi in 2018 into 2019. The farm is located more than 30 miles from Palazzo’s campaign office in Gulfport.
He also reportedly paid an accounting firm he founded, which is now run by his ex-wife, tens of thousands of dollars in fees. Since 2011, Palazzo’s campaign reportedly paid the firm $127,000.
When allegations of illegal spending was first raised by the watchdog group the Campaign Legal Center in March, Palazzo’s campaign called it “a biased, George Soros-supported, Washington, D.C. based group.”
Palazzo ran unopposed in last week’s election.