Ex-Wife: Kirk Improperly Paid His Ex-Girlfriend For Campaign Work
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The ex-wife of U.S. Sen. Mark Kirk (R-Ill.) has filed a federal election complaint, alleging he improperly paid his ex-girlfriend for campaign work.
As WBBM Newsradio's Mike Krauser reports, the Chicago Tribune reports Kirk's ex-wife, attorney Kimberly Vertolli, said during the 2010 campaign, she was no longer supporting her ex-husband's run and was critical of the role of his then-girlfriend, Dodie McCracken.
LISTEN: WBBM Newsradio's Mike Krauser reports
Podcast
Then, Kirk brought Vertolli into the campaign, and paid her through what the Tribune calls an "obscure corporate entity" created after the election.
Now, Vertolli is questioning the $143,000 in fees and expenses that were given to McCracken – again through a third party, the Tribune reported.
In both cases, the women's names did not appear in disclosure forms, the newspaper reported.
Vertolli says the funds she received were not improper, given that she wasn't paid through the corporate entity until the election was over, the paper reported.
Kirk's office calls Vertolli's complaint "groundless," the Tribune reported. The newspaper notes that federal law allows spouses, relatives and friends to be paid for campaign work, and that Kirk has disclosed that he pays his mother a salary and paid his stepmother for a car during his U.S. Senate campaign.
Kirk is still in the process of recovering from a stroke he suffered earlier this year.
