http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/presidential-races/289057-dws-rival-files-legal-complaint-over-emailsJuly 25, 2016, 09:08 am
DWS rival files legal complaint over emails
By Jonathan Swan
Debbie Wasserman Schultz's Florida primary opponent, Tim Canova, says he's preparing a legal complaint against the outgoing Democratic National Committee (DNC) chairwoman as a result of information revealed last week by WikiLeaks.
“The Wikileaks emails indicate that Debbie Wasserman Schultz used DNC resources to assist her reelection campaign in violation of federal law," said Tim Canova, a Democratic law professor who is challenging Wasserman Schultz in Florida's 23rd Congressional District primary on Aug. 30.
“According to the emails, top DNC officials used party resources to monitor, respond to, and impede my campaign on numerous occasions,” Canova added in a statement to reporters on Monday, the first morning of the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia.
“My campaign election lawyers are investigating these circumstances and preparing a complaint against Wasserman Schultz with the Federal Election Commission.”
Wasserman Schultz has already announced her resignation as chairwoman and opted to minimize her role in this week's convention in an attempt to tamp down protests by Bernie Sanders supporters. Sanders, who publicly backed Canova, has accused Wasserman Schultz and the DNC of working against him during the party's presidential primaries.
Those tensions were inflamed by Friday's email leak, which showed that Wasserman Schultz and top DNC officials privately mocked, and in some cases, even plotted to undermine Sanders all while the DNC claimed to be neutral.
But while the WikiLeaks emails provided strong evidence that Wasserman Schultz and other top DNC officials looked to help presumptive nominee Hillary Clinton against Sanders, the evidence to support Canova's claim of interference in his race is less straightforward.
In his statement, Canova appears to be referring to emails that show DNC staffers were paying close attention to a May protest rally in Alaska, which was to feature negative sentiment toward Wasserman Schultz and the Democratic Party establishment.
Senior DNC official Kate Houghton asked for “intel” about Canova's speech at the event.
“When is he speaking compared to when she is speaking? Adding a few more people. We need as much Intel as you can provide,” Houghton said to a group of DNC staffers, according to the leaked email.
But no evidence has surfaced that the DNC staffers directly intervened in Wasserman Schultz's primary.
The DNC has been contacted for comment.
