The New Hampshire Attorney General’s Office has ordered two out-of-state companies to stop distributing anonymous political mailers about the state’s U.S. Senate race while its Election Law Unit investigates complaints from residents.
The office sent cease-and-desist letters Friday to Journeyman Press, a Massachusetts printing company, and Pinpoint Campaigns, a Washington, D.C., direct-mail firm. Investigators said the mailers lacked the required disclosures identifying who paid for the political advertising.
The investigation is at the complaint and enforcement stage. The Attorney General’s Office said it has received complaints about three mailers concerning Republican candidate John Sununu and Constitution Party candidate Edmond Laplante. The notices require the firms to stop distributing political advertising without the disclosures required by state and federal law.
Campaigns contacted
Attorney General’s Office personnel determined that Journeyman Press produced the mailers and that Pinpoint Campaigns commissioned them for delivery through the U.S. Postal Service. The office contacted the Sununu and Laplante campaigns as well as Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Rep. Christopher Pappas. It also contacted the New Hampshire Democratic Party and New Hampshire Republican Party.
Each campaign and party told the office it had no prior knowledge of or coordinated with Journeyman Press or Pinpoint Campaigns in producing the mailers, according to the Attorney General’s Office. The office’s investigation continues.
“This would not be the first time Democrats have tried dirty tricks in New Hampshire.”
— Mike Schrimpf, spokesperson for John Sununu’s campaign
Schrimpf attributed the mailers to state Democrats and called on Pappas to condemn them. Pappas’ campaign denied involvement. A spokesperson for Pappas said the campaign follows disclosure rules and supports requiring candidates and groups to comply with them.
- Three anonymous mailers are part of the Attorney General’s investigation.
- The mailers concerned Sununu and Laplante in the U.S. Senate race.
- The alleged missing disclosures are commonly known as “paid for by” disclaimers.
New Hampshire law requires political advertising to identify the person or entity responsible for the message. The federal rules cited by the Attorney General’s Office also require identifying information for covered political communications. The cease-and-desist orders address further distribution while investigators review the complaints and the companies’ roles in producing and commissioning the mailers.
