MS Now reports:

A week out from a crowded and contentious Democratic primary in Illinois’s 9th Congressional District, Amanda Informed, an online influencer in Florida received an email with an offer: one negative post about candidate Kat Abughazaleh on Instagram and TikTok, for $1,500.

The request, which came from a secretive political organization called Democracy Unmuted, was forwarded to her by Matt Anthes, founder of Advocators, a digital marketing agency focused on politics and advocacy through micro-influencers.

The job offer, reviewed by MS NOW, came with a brief explaining how the group wanted Amanda — who declined to give her real name citing privacy concerns — to post for her roughly 100,000 followers. Democracy Unmuted explained that it wanted creators to “engage voters” and encouraged them “to look past viral personalities and ask real questions about who is running and why.”

The suggested talking points were all focused on Abughazaleh, the youngest candidate and a former journalist for the left-leaning website Media Matters. The offer called for influencers to “highlight more than one” of Abughazaleh’s alleged shortcomings: she was inexperienced, came from a wealthy family, may live with her partner in a different neighborhood and is too new to the area to serve.

“Kat’s campaign appears designed for attention rather than impact,” the brief said.

Asked for comment about Democracy Unmuted’s attack campaign on Friday, Abughazaleh shared a statement with MS NOW, calling the material “filled with false and defamatory claims about Kat’s background and campaign.”

“Voters deserve to know who is paying for political influence campaigns like this and whether any campaigns or outside groups are coordinating behind the scenes,” the statement continued. “We welcome full investigative scrutiny of the entities involved and the sources of their funding.”

Amanda declined the job.

“The money didn’t feel right coming from someone who’s not disclosing where the money is coming from,” she said in a phone interview with MS NOW. “That’s not something that I want to be involved in. I want to make sure that it’s coming from a source that is not doing nefarious things like interfering with elections.”

The race to replace Illinois’ retiring Rep. Jan Schakowsky has drawn a staggering 15 Democratic candidates and become one of the most-watched — and most expensive — primaries in the country. The frontrunners, Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss, state Sen. Laura Fine and progressive activist Abughazaleh, have raised millions of dollars for their campaigns, and dark-money special interest groups, including AIPAC-backed committees, have poured millions more into the race. In recent weeks, Abughazaleh has caught up to Biss in the polls. The election is in four days. [Continue reading…]