California Democrat Maxine Waters was caught in a new nepotism storm after she paid her daughter $192,000 in campaign funds to run Operation Slate Mailer
- US Rep. Maxine Waters has paid her daughter Karen $192,300 from her campaign fund over the past two years to run her “Slate Mailer” operation
- The operation will see the congresswoman accepting payments to appear on promotional letters for other Democrats and policies in California
- Waters has been criticized for years for her daughter’s campaigning, with the congresswoman defending her decision
US Rep. Maxine Waters is under scrutiny again after her daughter received more than $192,000 from her campaign fund to run her slate mailer operation.
According to Federal Election Commission filings, between January 2021 and December 2022, Karen Waters earned $192,300 running her mother’s sales letters.
Waters, a popular California Democrat, takes payments to appear on the mailings, a common state practice but particularly rare for federal politicians.
The water was cleared to power the operation in 2004, and Karen has since made more than $1.2 million as critics continue to highlight the apparent nepotism.
US Rep. Maxine Waters (left) has paid her daughter Karen (right) $192,300 from her campaign fund over the past two years to run her slate mailer operation
Although rare for high-ranking politicians, the congresswoman accepts payments to appear on the mailers for other Democrats and California policies
Karen (pictured) has received more than 1.2 million since the operation began in 2004
According to campaign records, Karen receives between $2,000 and $6,000 in management fees about twice a month.
It was previously reported that Karen received $81,650 in campaign funds in 12 installments from October 23, 2020 to June 17, 2021.
Federal law does not prohibit candidates or members of Congress from hiring family members for a campaign.
Karen’s role in her mother’s campaign is to organize the slate mailing process, which hires a consulting firm to create a pamphlet listing candidates or policies for each person running for election and the advises voters on how to cast their ballot papers.
It’s standard practice in California, where Waters has reaped the rewards by appearing in mailings with notable Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris, Gov. Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascon.
Pictured: A list of recent payments to Karen Waters
Waters has been criticized for years for her daughter’s six-figure earnings from her campaign. The duo is pictured at an NAACP event in 2008
Harris first used the mailers in 2010, when she paid $33.00 to Waters’ campaign in her bid for California attorney general and then paid $30,000 again when she ran for the Senate, federal filings show .
Newsom paid $45,000 to Waters’ campaign when he was running for lieutenant governor in 2010, and Gascon donated $36,500 in his 2020 campaign.
Waters’ campaign did not immediately respond to ‘s request for comment.
Vice President Kamala Harris (left) and California Gov. Gavin Newsom (right) are among the many who have paid tens of thousands to Waters’ slate mailer operation
The congresswoman has repeatedly defended her decision to hire her daughter to run her mailing operation, as well as to pay other family members to work on her campaign.
“You do your business and I do mine,” she said when reports on campaign spending were first released in 2004. “We’re not bad people.”
Along with Karen, Waters’ son, Edward Jr., shared in the proceeds of the slate mail and occasionally served as a consultant for Waters-sponsored campaigns.