The long-time Democratic fundraiser and Mayor Joe Hogsett campaign staffer who arranged for wish lists for top donors to be delivered to one of Hogsett’s top city officials has been fundraising for Beau Bayh, the secretary of state candidate whose multimillion-dollar war chest helped him clinch the Democratic nomination, campaign finance reports show.
Bayh, who has built his campaign around fighting corruption and spurning political insiders, has paid Emily Gurwitz’ firm, EG Strategies, at least $30,000 for fundraising since Bayh’s campaign launch, and he has not yet issued a statement about Hogsett. But the 30-year-old candidate is now making a unique pledge: If elected, he will establish strict ethical guidelines for campaign staffers and will not award secretary of state contracts to a single donor.
“If elected, any campaign staffer working for me will be completely prohibited from contacting any state employee about state business,” Bayh said in a statement responding to an IndyStar question about Gurwitz’s relationship with his campaign. “I’ve been clear since the first day of this campaign that I will conduct an independent audit of this office to root out the corruption we’ve seen. In that spirit, I pledge to not award Secretary of State contracts to anyone who has donated to my campaign.”…