614 SW 11th Ave. It was a typical Saturday night for young Portlanders looking to dance and flirt in a low-lit, packed space at the base of the Sentinel Hotel at Fortune, a popular West End bar located at .

As we moved from August 31st to September 1st, only one thing was different. Near the bar’s entrance, where the security guard was checking IDs, a City Council candidate named Ben Hufford allegedly made an offer to the bartenders waiting in line: Donate $10 to so they wouldn’t have to pay the $20 cover charge for his political campaign. Some remember him saying they couldn’t enter the bar unless they donated to his campaign.

Hufford, an architect, worked in the 4th District, which covers the entire west coast and much of the Southeast. He is also the co-owner of Fortune. Hufford ran as a moderate candidate who criticized the city and Multnomah County for a lack of accountability and urgency; He was also endorsed by three leading mayoral candidates, including Carmen Rubio, Rene Gonzalez and Mayor-elect Keith Wilson.

On that Saturday and Sunday, campaign finance records provided by the city of Portland show Hufford received 170 campaign donations. Almost all of them were $10 or multiples of $10.

Four bosses talking WWHufford, each entering the bar before midnight on Aug. 31 or shortly after midnight on Sept. 1, walked up and down the line of patrons, telling them the upfront fee was $20 but they could pay his offer instead. $10 and free entry to the bar.

Another customer recalls being told by someone while standing in line that he and his friends would donate to Hufford’s campaign for a fee. They were then given a QR code to scan, which directed them to Hufford’s campaign website.

“Who is this man?” we asked. the boss remembers. “We wanted to get in, we didn’t care how it happened. I think we said ‘of course’.

Four other patrons remember Hufford telling them they had to donate to his campaign or they wouldn’t be able to enter the bar.

The tenth customer, Jasmine Truong, says she arrived at Fortune with a group of friends just after 11 p.m. on Aug. 31. Truong remembers the line to get into the bar was long.

“My friends and I didn’t have to wait long before we heard a commotion. “There was someone willing to ‘cover’ our fee and let us in if we donated money,” Truong recalls. When she saw a photo of Hufford, she said it was him. “They didn’t specify what it was for, just a QR code that everyone scanned and it took us to a campaign page. That’s when I realized they were raising money for someone’s campaign. There was no mention of his campaign or who he was. Just scan the QR code to get in.”

Hufford said Fortune hosted a “fundraiser” for him at the bar that night.

“Fortune held a fundraiser for ben4portland where contributors came to the bar one evening, and I was there to meet them,” says Hufford. “The event was limited to campaign supporters and many people contributed to the event; suggested contribution was $10.”

“I wasn’t aware that people could pay a different amount for security to get into a campaign event or to avoid lining up at the event,” Hufford added.

None of the eleven customers WW I said you heard Hufford’s name before you got in line to go to the bar. They also said they were unaware they were participating in a “fundraiser.” They wanted to enter the bar.

To the best of customers’ recollection, nothing happened at the bar that signaled a campaign event. A DJ in the corner played remixes of the most popular songs, and bar patrons danced, sang and drank. It was business as usual.

According to two campaign finance experts, Hufford’s solicitation of campaign donations in exchange for free admission to the bar appears to violate state election law prohibiting the use of undue influence. What this means: A candidate for political office cannot offer anything of value to solicit donations. In this scenario, the value driver is a free pass to Fortune.

Says election attorney Dan Meek: “It looks like…the candidate is offering something worth $20 (coverage fee waiver) to those who line up in exchange for a $10 contribution to his campaign. This gratuitous payment would violate Oregon Revised Statutes 260.665.”

Longtime political consultant Paige Richardson says Hufford’s proposal “is absolutely contrary to the spirit of the laws and rules governing public campaign financing.” “He completely gamed the system.”

Hufford’s alleged gamble is important because it can generate much more public money from donations. The city’s public campaign finance system ties its distribution to the number of small donations the candidate receives; these donations are matched at up to a 9-to-1 ratio.

Data from the city’s Small Donor Choices program shows Hufford received 170 donations on Aug. 31 and Sept. 1: 121 donations on Aug. 31 and another 49 on Sept. 1, likely in the early hours of Sunday morning, as patrons arrived. Luck. Of the nearly 170 donations made that night, 94 were donated by the municipality. That’s the equivalent of more than $8,000 in taxpayer money for Hufford’s campaign that night.

Records show that in August and September, Hufford received no more than 18 donations on a single day.

Hufford received a total of 557 donations during his eight-month campaign. That means 30% of Hufford’s total donations came from that Saturday and Sunday. By the end of his campaign, Hufford had unlocked $52,000 in taxpayer funds.

Hufford did not respond to follow-up questions asking whether he told clients they could avoid a $20 coverage fee if they contributed money to his campaign. Hufford also gave no details about the “fundraiser” that Fortune said he hosted that night until the early hours of Sunday morning. Hufford also did not respond to questions about whether it was possible for bargoers to know they were participating in a political event when they joined the line.

Fortune representative Karen Bowler said Hufford told Fortune’s co-owners that he was holding a “campaign event” for fans at the bar, but they were “not aware of the details” of the cover charge offer.

Hufford is currently one of 12 candidates for the city of Portland (former candidates as of the November 5 election). Under investigation by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to participate in donation exchange agreements. Agreements between candidates first reported by WW At the beginning of September.