An Ex-Con Promoted Campaign Software at ALEC’s Annual Meeting

Just before the American Legislative Exchange Council’s annual meeting in July, a former Oklahoma legislator and convicted felon reached out to ALEC state chairs to market a campaign data management platform favored by the Republican National Committee (RNC).

“As a former state senator, I remember not too long ago using paper, pencil, and clipboard as I went door to door in targeted precincts,” wrote Kyle Loveless in an email obtained by the Center for Media and Democracy (CMD). “Now you can have this all in the palm of your hand.”

Loveless, who is now a client strategist with the polling and data analytics firm WPA Intelligence, resigned from the Oklahoma State Senate in 2017 after five years in office and pleading guilty to three felony counts for embezzling more than $100,000 from his own campaign funds, filing false campaign reports, and perjury, according to The Oklahoman. Previously, he had also been accused of misusing campaign funds while he was the campaign manager for an Oklahoma congressman.

In his plea deal, Loveless agreed to never again run for or hold any public position and never work as a lobbyist or paid political consultant in Oklahoma. As a convicted felon, he was also prohibited from voting in any elections until completing his sentence: three years on probation. 

In his work bio, Loveless claims that as a legislator he earned credibility with conservatives due to “his stance against wasteful spending.” While a legislator, Loveless was an ALEC member.

As one of the exhibitors at ALEC’s most recent annual meeting, WPA Intelligence presented its main product: a massive voter database and data management platform called Bonfire, according to materials obtained by CMD. 

On July 25th — the second day of ALEC’s annual meeting — Loveless touted that he was “Signing up legislators across the country to the award winning @BonfireData @WPAIntel,” on the social media platform X.

In its marketing to political campaigns, WPA Intelligence pitches Bonfire as a tool for “power[ing] data-informed messaging strategies that resonate with your local electorate.” It promises to give users “a competitive edge by tailoring your campaign strategy to effectively engage the most receptive voters in your community.” And it touts the company as an “RNC-Approved Vendor.” 

Bonfire claims that its data includes more than 1 billion voter identification numbers, 222 million registered voters in the U.S., and 184 million cell phone numbers, according to its promotional materials obtained and reviewed by CMD. Those materials also point out that unlike its competitors, its services are “OFF the cloud” and involve “no Big Tech companies.”

WPA Intelligence also provides data and polling to a number of right-wing organizations, including Club for Growth, Freedom Works, and the Family Research Council, a Christian Right activist organization that works to restrict reproductive and LGBTQ rights. 

WPA Intelligence is led by Amanda Iovino, who was the polling director for Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin (R) in 2021 when he became the first Republican to win statewide office there in a dozen years.

As a 501(c)(3) organization, ALEC is purportedly apolitical, yet has a long history of helping its members win elections. Earlier this year, its advocacy arm, ALEC Action, teamed up with Run GenZ to recruit and train young Republicans to run for state and local office, and held a “Boomer to Zoomer: Run GenZ Informational Meeting” at the annual meeting.

The group also regularly invites pollsters to speak at ALEC meetings before elections, including an appearance by “renowned pollster and friend of ALEC” Frank Luntz in 2020. This year, ALEC members heard pre-recorded remarks from Kellyanne Conway, the Republican political consultant and pollster who served as Trump’s senior counselor from 2017–20, on “how to communicate” about abortion this election cycle.

In 2021, three watchdog groups, including CMD, filed campaign finance complaints against ALEC in 15 states for giving sophisticated voter management campaign software linked to the RNC to its legislative members.