ActBlue Co-Founder Pleads the Fifth in House Probe Into Alleged Foreign and Fraudulent Donations

ActBlue co-founder Matt DeBergalis invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination Thursday during a closed-door congressional deposition examining allegations that the Democratic fundraising powerhouse failed to adequately prevent fraudulent and foreign political contributions.

DeBergalis appeared before investigators from the House Administration, Judiciary and Oversight committees. His deposition was remarkably brief, lasting less than 30 minutes as lawmakers sought answers about ActBlue’s handling of billions of dollars in political donations.

The three Republican-led committees have been jointly investigating whether weaknesses in ActBlue’s fraud-prevention systems could have allowed money originating from foreign sources or fraudulent transactions to enter American political campaigns.

One major focus has been ActBlue’s previous decision not to universally require donors to provide the CVV security code found on credit and debit cards. Republicans argue that the missing safeguard made it easier for fraudulent transactions to pass through the fundraising platform.

ActBlue has since implemented a CVV requirement and has repeatedly denied violating federal campaign-finance laws. The organization maintains that it has safeguards designed to detect fraudulent and foreign contributions and has disputed allegations made during the congressional investigation.

House Administration Committee Chairman Bryan Steil has questioned whether ActBlue has gone far enough to address the concerns. He said lawmakers want to determine whether the organization has actually strengthened its systems sufficiently to prevent illegal foreign money from entering American elections.

The congressional scrutiny intensified after Republican investigators released a report in April 2025 alleging that ActBlue executives and employees were aware that foreign and domestic fraudulent actors were attempting to exploit the platform but failed to take the threat seriously enough.

DeBergalis is also not the first senior ActBlue figure to invoke the Fifth Amendment during the investigation. Current CEO Regina Wallace-Jones invoked the constitutional protection during a public congressional hearing in June rather than answering lawmakers’ questions about the organization’s donation practices.

Republican investigators have expressed frustration over their inability to obtain answers directly from senior ActBlue officials. Steil argued that while witnesses have the constitutional right to remain silent, Americans also have a legitimate interest in understanding how a fundraising operation that has processed roughly $20 billion for Democratic candidates and liberal causes has handled potentially suspicious transactions.

ActBlue has become a crucial component of Democratic campaign infrastructure since its creation in 2004. Democratic candidates and progressive organizations across the country rely on the platform to process online contributions, making questions surrounding its security procedures particularly significant for federal elections.

Invoking the Fifth Amendment does not establish that DeBergalis committed a crime, and the allegations being examined by congressional investigators have not themselves established illegal conduct by ActBlue. The constitutional protection allows witnesses to refuse to provide testimony that could potentially incriminate them.

Still, DeBergalis’ decision adds another layer to the congressional investigation. With ActBlue’s co-founder and current CEO both having invoked the Fifth rather than answer lawmakers’ questions, Republicans are expected to continue pressing for records and testimony as they investigate whether foreign or fraudulent money entered American political campaigns through one of the Democratic Party’s most important fundraising platforms.