A week out from a crowded and contentious Democratic primary in Illinois’s 9th Congressional District, Amanda Informed, an online influencer in Florida received an email with an offer: one negative post about candidate Kat Abughazaleh on Instagram and TikTok, for $1,500.
The request, which came from a secretive political organization called Democracy Unmuted, was forwarded to her by Matt Anthes, founder of Advocators, a digital marketing agency focused on politics and advocacy through micro-influencers.
The job offer, reviewed by MS NOW, came with a brief explaining how the group wanted Amanda — who declined to give her real name citing privacy concerns — to post for her roughly 100,000 followers. Democracy Unmuted explained that it wanted creators to “engage voters” and encouraged them “to look past viral personalities and ask real questions about who is running and why.”
The suggested talking points were all focused on Abughazaleh, the youngest candidate and a former journalist for the left-leaning website Media Matters. The offer called for influencers to “highlight more than one” of Abughazaleh’s alleged shortcomings: she was inexperienced, came from a wealthy family, may live with her partner in a different neighborhood and is too new to the area to serve.
“Kat’s campaign appears designed for attention rather than impact,” the brief said.
Asked for comment about Democracy Unmuted’s attack campaign on Friday, Abughazaleh shared a statement with MS NOW, calling the material “filled with false and defamatory claims about Kat’s background and campaign.”
“Voters deserve to know who is paying for political influence campaigns like this and whether any campaigns or outside groups are coordinating behind the scenes,” the statement continued. “We welcome full investigative scrutiny of the entities involved and the sources of their funding.”
Amanda declined the job.
“The money didn’t feel right coming from someone who’s not disclosing where the money is coming from,” she said in a phone interview with MS NOW. “That’s not something that I want to be involved in. I want to make sure that it’s coming from a source that is not doing nefarious things like interfering with elections.”
The race to replace Illinois’ retiring Rep. Jan Schakowsky has drawn a staggering 15 Democratic candidates and become one of the most-watched — and most expensive — primaries in the country. The frontrunners, Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss, state Sen. Laura Fine and progressive activist Abughazaleh, have raised millions of dollars for their campaigns, and dark-money special interest groups, including AIPAC-backed committees, have poured millions more into the race. In recent weeks, Abughazaleh has caught up to Biss in the polls. The election is in four days.
In response to calls for comment on Abughazaleh, a Biss spokesperson said his campaign had been subject to dark money attacks, too: more “than any other candidate in Illinois.”
It’s unclear who paid for the campaign targeting Abughazaleh. Anthes said in his email to Amanda that Democracy Unmuted was “not an official org yet,” and while he couldn’t disclose the funders, he said they were “individuals from the IL area who have served in the highest offices and been at top of their game in the media.”
Democracy Unmuted’s website, registered two weeks ago, seems to be a slapdash effort at a political advocacy website. It has no “about” section and no contact information.
“Do the right thing” says huge text laid over stock images of protestors on its website. “Stand up. Speak out. Protect what’s left of democracy, and forge a better future together.” A link to “sign up now” points to an online form, but filling it out triggers no additional communication. A search of Federal Election Commission records returned no filings for Democracy Unmuted, and the group is not listed in Illinois business records filed with the secretary of state.
“Dark money groups have grown to exercise tremendous influence,” said Abigail Bellows, senior policy director for anti-corruption and accountability at Common Cause, a nonpartisan government watchdog group.
“With a lot of these competitive races, these groups can spring up overnight,” Bellows said.
“These dark money groups use these shadowy vehicles for political participation that really undercuts voters,” she said. “It just breeds distrust.”
The campaign, Anthes said in his email, was being executed by the digital marketing agency Upstart Factory, which lists Anthes as its founder. Anthes’ other marketing agency, Advocators, lists the American Heart Association and the United Nations among its past clients.
Reached for comment Friday morning, Anthes said: “We don’t comment on or disclose the identity of our clients. What we can tell you is that all of our dealings and practices are fully compliant with FEC rules and regulations, including those at our creative agency partner, Upstart Factory.”
It’s unclear how many creators were ultimately part of the Democracy Unmuted campaign.
MS NOW found several recent creator videos that seemed to follow the Democracy Unmuted brief targeting Abughazaleh.
One, from Justin Kralemann, a Missouri creator who posts about progressive politics, recited whole sentences from the Democracy Unmuted brief. Kralemann, wearing a white hat with “WOKE” emblazoned on the front, mispronounced Abughazaleh’s name and told his combined one million followers on Instagram and TikTok that it was important “to look past viral personalities and ask who is running and why” — a quote matching a suggested quote in the brief.
MS NOW requested an interview with Kralemann on Thursday evening, asking about the video and whether it was part of a paid campaign. Kralemann immediately removed his posts and declined, adding a statement that said in part: “Shortly after posting, I realized it did not meet the standards I’ve set for my platform, so I removed it.”
Kralemann told MS NOW in an email, “I was not paid for this content,” but he did not return an email asking whether he had been offered compensation for the original post.
“I want to sincerely apologize to Kat Abughazaleh and wish her the best of luck in the upcoming primaries,” his statement closed.
Brandy Zadrozny is a senior enterprise reporter for MS NOW. She was a previously a senior enterprise reporter for NBC News, based in New York.