ActBlue Co-Founder Invokes Fifth Amendment in House Fraud Probe

ActBlue co-founder Matt DeBergalis invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination during a closed-door House hearing on Thursday. The testimony was part of a joint investigation by the House Administration, Oversight, and Judiciary Committees into whether lenient fraud-prevention measures allowed foreign and fraudulent contributions to enter U.S. political campaigns.

The probe, initiated in 2023 by Chairman Bryan Steil, focused on the platform's previous failure to require credit card CVV numbers for donations. While ActBlue has since implemented a CVV mandate and claims foreign actors are exploiting the system, a committee report from April 2025 alleged that executives were aware of these threats but failed to take them seriously.

DeBergalis's refusal to answer questions follows a similar action by former ActBlue CEO Regina Wallace-Jones, who also invoked the Fifth Amendment during the GOP-led investigation in June 2026.