New York Democratic congressional candidate Mondaire Jones is locked in a tight contest with Republican Rep. Mike Lawler in New York’s 17th Congressional District.
But Jones is better known for being one of CNN’s high-profile political contributors. And his appearances with the network could cost him his career in politics… and put him behind bars with the feds.
Here’s what’s happened.
According to a complaint filed by a government watchdog on Monday, Jones allegedly violated federal law by failing to properly disclose income earned from his CNN appearances, along with work for leftist organizations, per a Daily Wire report.
The complaint, filed by the Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust (FACT), a nonprofit organization that promotes transparency in politics, alleges he omitted several sources of earned income on his most recent financial disclosure that he included in an original financial disclosure covering a similar time period.
Per the report, the missing income included payments for CNN appearances as well as work with Democrat-aligned PAC Future Forward USA Action and Demand Justice, a left-wing group that allegedly aims to change the Supreme Court.
In his first financial disclosure from August 4, 2023, Jones noted that he had earned $34,022 as a CNN contributor, a $123,237 salary from Future Forward USA Action, $10,000 in consulting fees for Demand Justice, and $150 article payment from The Nation.
However, in his second financial disclosure from May 15, 2024, which was supposed to cover the period beginning January 1, 2023, it left out his income from CNN, Future Forward, The Nation, and Demand Justice.
The only income Jones included was $12,000 from Mondaire Jones for Congress for 2024.
“Unfortunately, two facts indicate that this was an intentional omission,” the complaint from FACT stated.
“First, the majority of information he omitted was related to political organizations or organizations that have positions with which voters may disagree. Second, in August and September 2024, Jones’ campaign was contacted by a reporter on three separate occasions asking about the information missing from his 2024 filing. Jones not only failed to respond, but he has yet to correct his filings.”
The complaint says that the discrepancies were likely “a strategic political calculation,” and that Jones, a former congressman, likely understood how financial disclosures work.
FACT asked for the House Ethics Committee to launch an investigation and impose any appropriate sanctions.
In January 2023, CNN issued a press release announcing Jones’ addition to the network.
The release read:
“Former Rep. Mondaire Jones (D-NY) is joining CNN as an on-air political commentator, the network announced today. Jones joins CNN after serving in the U.S. House of Representatives, where he made history as one of two openly gay, Black members of Congress. In addition to serving on the House Judiciary, Education and Labor, and Ethics Committees, Jones was elected unanimously by his colleagues as Freshman Representative to House Democratic Leadership and was appointed a Deputy Whip of the Congressional Progressive Caucus and Co-Chair of the LGBTQ Equality Caucus.
Prior to being elected to Congress, Jones was a litigator in the Westchester County Attorney’s Office. Jones previously worked at the Department of Justice during the Obama Administration. Jones is a co-founder of the nonprofit Rising Leaders, Inc. and has previously served on the NAACP’s National Board of Directors and on the board of the New York Civil Liberties Union.”
Jones and his current campaign have yet to respond to requests for comment on the discrepancies.
As for the current race, according to a New York Post, Lawyer getting support from 45% of likely voters and Jones 44%.
However, as previously reported by The Horn News, Lawler has also come under scrutiny after the New York Times obtained photos of him wearing blackface about two decades ago at a college Halloween costume party where he dressed as Michael Jackson.