Candidate’s $19K campaign donation to family charity raises legal, ethical questions

An unsuccessful candidate for Orange County school board chair has directed her remaining campaign money to the Christian charity she and her husband operate.Orange County school board chair campaign fundsAfter losing her race, Alicia Farrant wrapped up her school board chair campaign with $19,000 left over in her bank account, according to financial records reviewed by FOX 35 Investigative Reporter Marie Edinger. Rather than returning the funds to donors, her political party, or the school district, she gave the money to Impact Nations, a Christian charity run by her and her husband, Jonathan Farrant.University of Central Florida Political Science Professor Aubrey Jewett said candidates have several standard options for surplus funds."A fairly popular choice among many candidates is to donate the money to charity or various charities," Jewett said. However, he noted, "It's not as common to donate that money to a charity that you yourself started and are an officer of and helped to run