- J.R. Majewski is the GOP nominee in Ohio's 9th District congressional race — one of the nation's most competitive.
- Majewski failed for months to disclose his personal finances as federal law requires.
Republican congressional candidate J.R. Majewski — a QAnon conspiracy theory promoter who former President Donald Trump endorsed in Ohio's ultra-competitive 9th District — disclosed two-and-a-half years worth of his personal financial activity after Insider on August 5 revealed he was violating a federal law.
The disclosures, submitted to the US House of Representatives on August 8, indicate that Majewski and his wife have up to $750,000 in personal debt, spread across home, home improvement, auto, and student loans.
That compares to $80,000 to $200,000 in reported assets, all held within savings, checking, and retirement accounts — and not including the value of Majewski's home, which he is not required to report. He holds no individual stocks, according to his disclosures.
Majewski's disclosures, which cover activity from January 1, 2020, to the present, do not indicate that he bought, sold, or held cryptocurrency.
But Majewski tweeted in January 2021 that he "just bought 25,000 shares of $DOGE." He added: "Why not? … Download Robinhood App, deposit some money and buy the coin DOGE"
Later in the day, Majewski tweeted that he was "already up $81.00," then "$111," then "$179."
—JR Majewski (@JRMajewski) January 28, 2021
Federal candidates and members of Congress must by law report cryptocurrency as they do stock and cash assets, per federal disclosure rules.
Majewski also disclosed withdrawing $73,330 this year from his 401k retirement plan at Holtec International, an energy services company that specializes in nuclear power. In December, Majewski personally loaned his campaign $50,000, according to Federal Election Commission records.
Majewski reported earning $52,049 from his work at Holtec International during this year.
Federal law requires all congressional candidates to file a certified financial disclosure with the US House shortly after raising or spending $5,000 in campaign cash, according to House ethics guidelines and federal law.
But Majewski, who's been running for Congress since February 25, 2021, surpassed this threshold sometime before June 30, 2021, according to FEC records.
A congressional candidate who "knowingly and willfully falsifies a statement or fails to file a statement" disclosing his or her personal finances may be subject to investigation by the Department of Justice.
While such investigations are rare, the maximum civil penalty for such an offense is $66,190 while the maximum criminal penalty is one year in federal prison plus a fine of up to the same amount, according to the federal Ethics in Government Act.
Representatives for Majewski did not immediately respond to questions Wednesday from Insider.
Prior to publication of Insider's article on August 5, J.R. Majewski for Congress campaign treasurer Sean Tarnowski declined to comment. Majewski's spokesperson, Melissa Pelletier, did not respond to multiple phone and email messages after saying by phone that she's "do my best" to answer a series of emailed questions.
Trying to unseat a 20-term incumbent
Capitalism, small government, and fiscal restraint are campaign themes for Majewski, who is challenging incumbent Democratic Rep. Marcy Kaptur in one of the nation's true toss-up House races, where no clear favorite has emerged.
Majewski listed "honesty," integrity" and "the ability to communicate" among the characteristics or principles most important for an elected official, according to a Ballotpedia candidate survey.
"I want to preserve the wealth I have earned to date & the wealth of my friends & family in OH09. I 100% believe in smaller government & fiscal responsibility," he tweeted on March 10.
"Bring back fiscal conservatism," he tweeted on May 28.
Until now, Majewski has not provided a detailed, certified, public accounting of where he earned his money and whether he carried debt.
In 2020, Majewski, while responding to a question about charitable donations, told a fellow tweeter: "You have no clue what I do with the money that I earn. It's NOYB" — none of your business.
Majewski's tardy financial filing follows publication of Insider's "Conflicted Congress" project, which found that 67 members of Congress and at least 182 senior congressional aides have in recent months violated the federal Stop Trading on Congressional Knowledge Act of 2012 with late or missing financial disclosures.
The investigation also identified dozens of lawmakers whose personal stock trades are discordant with their public responsibilities, such as members who craft anti-tobacco policy but invest in tobacco giants and others who receive plaudits from environmental groups for crafting policy aimed at combating the climate crisis — yet invest in fossil fuel companies.
Numerous members of Congress hold the stock of defense contractors at a time when the House and Senate are voting on hundreds of billions of dollars in military spending, including emergency aid to Ukraine in support of its war effort against Russia.
Congress is now actively debating whether to ban federal lawmakers, their spouses, and top congressional staffers from trading individual stocks at all, although no vote has yet been scheduled on a bill that would enact such a ban.