Luke Murphy briefly listed as Treasurer for super PAC boosting his candidacy

A pro-Luke Murphy super PAC that’s legally barred from coordinating with his congressional campaign briefly listed Murphy himself as its Treasurer — an arrangement now being called a clerical error.

Let Freedom Ring originally formed on June 23, but on July 10 reorganized with Murphy in charge despite being classified as an “independent expenditure-only political committee.” While listing its address at a Tampa UPS store, the super PAC listed Murphy as the custodian of records and Treasurer for the campaign, and a P.O. Box in Havana as a point of contact.

Nancy Watkins, the original Treasurer for the super PAC in June, said she turned over the books on July 10 to Mark Lyle. The committee filed new paperwork on July 23 redesignating Lyle as Treasurer, then identified the naming of Murphy as Treasurer as a clerical error. Watkins said it was her error that caused the misidentification.

But during the time period when Murphy was listed as the super PAC Treasurer, several political mailers from Let Freedom Ring hit mailboxes in Florida’s 2nd Congressional District. That included one touting Murphy’s military service alongside several photos of him in uniform, and another showing a photo of the Purple Heart veteran with his wife and dog that also appears as the main image on the homepage for Murphy’s official campaign.

Super PACs can receive unlimited financial contributions from donors, avoiding many of the same restrictions faced by official candidate accounts or affiliated leadership PACs controlled by candidates for federal office. That comes with rules forbidding coordination with candidates.

Let Freedom Ring also has yet to report any of its fundraising or distribution of funds despite the appearance of political advertisements in the district that bear the super PAC’s name. There has been an independent expenditure report filed with Lyle listed as Treasurer.

It remains unclear if the PAC has received large donations. Candidates face fundraising restrictions when soliciting for super PACs, with individuals’ donations capped at $5,000. By comparison, super PACs operating independently of campaigns, even if they are focused on boosting specific candidates, often work with donations of millions from individuals.

It won’t be clear what sort of fundraising and spending occurred when Murphy was Treasurer until more financial disclosures are filed.

The flyers direct voters to a website that currently has only a landing page with no content. That web domain was registered the same day the super PAC originally formed, though a search only shows it was registered through GoDaddy, which masks the current holder.

Murphy is one of several Republicans running to succeed retiring U.S. Rep. Neal Dunn.