A campaign finance watchdog has filed a complaint with federal regulators, accusing Venezuelan billionaire banker Julio Herrera Velutini of using his daughter as a stand-in donor to channel $3.5 million to a pro-Trump super PAC before President Donald Trump pardoned him.
The Campaign Legal Center submitted a 16-page complaint on Tuesday to the Federal Election Commission. The complaint claims Herrera Velutini, a foreign national, financed contributions to MAGA Inc. in the name of his daughter, Isabela Herrera. This allegedly violates federal law, which prohibits foreign money in U.S. elections and contributions made in another person’s name.
According to the group, the total donations reached $3.5 million and were made between December 2024 and July 2025. MAGA Inc., a super PAC that supports Trump, reported these contributions under Isabela Herrera’s name. The timeline is significant because Trump pardoned Herrera Velutini in January 2026, months after the last contribution.
“The available information supports finding reason to believe that Julio Herrera Velutini made, and his daughter Isabela Herrera knowingly allowed her name to be used to make, prohibited foreign contributions in another person’s name totaling $3.5 million,” the complaint states, according to the Campaign Legal Center’s filing and summary.
The complaint does not accuse Trump or the super PAC of any specific crime. It requests that the FEC investigate whether Herrera Velutini provided the funds and if the donations were illegal “straw donor” contributions and foreign national spending.
Herrera Velutini became the focus of U.S. prosecutors in a public corruption case in Puerto Rico that initially included felony allegations linked to campaign contributions and official actions. In January 2026, Trump pardoned Herrera Velutini and other defendants involved in that case, including former Puerto Rico Gov. Wanda Vázquez Garced, as reported by The Washington Post.
The Post also noted that Herrera Velutini pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor campaign finance charge after prosecutors lowered the case from more serious counts. His attorneys sought clemency from the White House. Additionally, Herrera Velutini’s daughter made large donations to a Trump-linked super PAC while the criminal case was still pending.
The Campaign Legal Center argues that its complaint connects those public campaign finance reports with the pardon. This sequence of events raises concerns that warrant review by regulators who enforce contribution limits and funding source restrictions.
While super PACs can raise unlimited sums, they must disclose their donors and comply with restrictions on foreign contributions and “conduit” donations made through another person, according to the watchdog.
The FEC can impose civil penalties for campaign finance violations. However, it often operates slowly and can become deadlocked along partisan lines. The agency did not make any immediate announcements regarding the complaint on Tuesday.
Herrera Velutini has not publicly responded to the new complaint mentioned in the Campaign Legal Center materials. The White House also did not provide any comments on the watchdog’s announcement.
This filing comes at a time when Trump’s use of the pardon power during his second term is under renewed scrutiny, particularly regarding clemency grants that have overlapped with political fundraising and ongoing litigation over campaign finance enforcement. The Campaign Legal Center insists that the public deserves clarity about who funds political committees supporting federal candidates and whether the reported donors acted as conduits for prohibited money.
