Complaint questions railroad ads featuring Aftab Pureval. Mayor says he's doing his job

An opponent of the proposed sale of the Cincinnati Southern Railway filed a complaint with the Ohio Elections Commission questioning the legality of Mayor Aftab Pureval starring in campaign commercials for the sale.

The complaint was filed by Todd Zinser, a West Price Hill resident and former federal inspector general who founded Citizens for a Transparent Railroad Vote.

In the complaint, mailed Thursday and provided to The Enquirer, Zinser asked if Pureval broke the law because the treasurer for Pureval's 2025 reelection campaign, Jens Sutmoller, is the same person who is running Build Cincinnati's Future, the campaign to sell the city-owned Cincinnati Southern Railway. Zinser questioned whether the commercials featuring Pureval were "coordinated electioneering," when one campaign illegally benefits another.

Sutmoller, a longtime Pureval friend, has worked on behalf of numerous nonprofit, political and issue campaigns for years. He is also helping with the campaign against Issue 24, a proposed earnings tax increase to fund affordable housing. Pureval has spoken out against Issue 24, saying it is not the right approach to Cincinnati's affordable housing shortage.

"We are confident this will be dismissed. There is no truth to the allegations," Pureval said.

Pureval: Complaint a 'last-minute' distraction

Pureval said his position, dating back to November when the railroad board decided to sell the railroad, is that the sale and creation of trust was the best option for citizens.

Pureval called the complaint a "last-minute" distraction.

'It’s my job to take clear positions on difficult things and I have done just that on this issue," Pureval said. "If it is successful, it will be a huge win for our community and the future strength of our city. If it loses, it’s on me. And that’s the job."

This is not the first time questions about Pureval's campaign activity have been raised. When Pureval unsuccessfully ran for the U.S. House in Ohio's 1st Congressional District, the Ohio Elections Commission found Pureval’s campaign violated state election laws by using money from his bid for county clerk of courts to pay for photography related to his effort to unseat Republican Rep. Steve Chabot.

The penalty: a $100 fine.

A bevy of other complaints related to spending were dismissed at the time.

Election attorney: It's why they call this 'silly season'

The Ohio Elections Commission handles between 800 and 1,000 complaints a year.

The vast majority of complaints take aim at campaign finances, missed financial deadlines, failing to file campaign reports, who paid for campaign activity and yard sign rule violations.

After a referral or a complaint is filed, the commission holds a preliminary review. The commission can either dismiss it or, if the commission believes a law was broken, set the matter for a full hearing.

Mark R. Weaver, an election law attorney who was the deputy attorney general of Ohio under Betty Montgomery from 1995 to 2000, said it's common for campaigns to share treasurers.

Some firms in Columbus handle up to 30 campaigns, said Weaver, who is a Republican and works in Columbus.

"A treasurer serving many campaigns is an extremely common practice," Weaver said.

Weaver said he was not familiar with the particulars of Zinser's complaint but said he thinks the electioneering law would apply only if Pureval were running for mayor at the same time as the railroad sale campaign. The rail sale is on the Nov. 7 ballot. Pureval has said he would run for reelection, but that race isn't until 2025.

Weaver said the majority of complaints "have a political component to them."

"They're filed by people who are hoping to get bad publicity for whoever has been alleged to have violated the law," Weaver said. "There's a reason why they call this silly season."

What the complaint argues

For weeks, commercials have aired on television featuring Pureval promoting the sale, Issue 22 on the ballot, from which the money will be used to fix Cincinnati's infrastructure.

“By holding the position of treasurer for both Build Cincinnati’s Future and Friends of Aftab Pureval at the same time, Mr. Sutmoller had the opportunity to use one source of campaign funds to promote both the passage of Issue 22 as well as promote Mayor Pureval, a declared candidate for reelection," the complaint says.

The complaint notes Pureval has a $83,946 deficit in his reelection campaign.

Zinser is asking the Ohio Election Commission if there should have been a public disclosure of “coordinated electioneering communications,” as defined by Ohio law. Zinser is also seeking a determine whether Sutmoller violated state rules against “corporate contributions to a candidate’s campaign" by facilitating Pureval’s appearance “in numerous TV advertisements.”

In other words, are the railroad sale commercials serving as mayoral reelection campaign commercials?

Sutmoller said no.

"Build Cincinnati's Future committee takes all campaign finance questions seriously, even if they lack merit, and we are committed to addressing them," Sutmoller said in a statement provided to The Enquirer. "We have only received the complaint through the media and are reviewing it. However, we are confident that our practices are in strict compliance with all Ohio campaign finance laws. As this was given to the media before the target of the complaint, it’s clear this is driven by political motives to muddy the conversation as voters cast their ballots."

Zinser provided the complaint at The Enquirer's request.

WCPO-TV reported last week, two days before the complaint was written, that Build Cincinnati's Future had spent at least $600,000 on commercials. Pre-general campaign finance reports are due Thursday. In an interview with WCPO, Pureval did not seem to know Sutmoller was his campaign treasurer.

"After WCPO broadcast its report, so many people were outraged that it looked like a big conflict of interest," Zinser said. "I looked at the election laws and this issue of coordinated electioneering stuck out because of the mayor starring in these TV ads. It's hard to believe they weren't aware this was a rule. They just don't think they fit the rule."

Build Cincinnati's Future is at least partly funded by the railroad's proposed buyer, Norfolk Southern Corp. A memo from the Cincinnati Southern Railway Board reviewed by The Enquirer in April suggested the campaign to sell the railroad planned spend at least $1 million.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Issue 22: Ohio elections complaint questions Pureval commercials