Darializa Avila Chevalier, a 32-year-old democratic socialist running for Congress, is pushing an ice cream giveaway for early voters in New York’s 13th Congressional District, raising eyebrows as a legally dubious campaign effort.Election experts warn that the giveaway, which promises a free ice cream from a local business, violates federal election law.Sean Cooksey, Vice President JD Vance’s legal counsel and former chairman of the Federal Election Commission, told the Washington Examiner it is “blatantly illegal to offer voters cash or gifts to influence their votes,” and that doing so violates two federal statutes and could be punishable by fines and up to two years in prison.
“And unlike an independent business that runs a promotion without understanding the law, a federal campaign should know better that it’s illegal to offer people gifts to buy their votes,” Cooksey wrote in a statement.The Washington Examiner reached out to Avila Chevalier’s campaign for comment. The Democratic hopeful is backed by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and is running to unseat Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chairman Adriano Espaillat (D-NY), a close ally of House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY).Avila Chevalier’s campaign promoted the giveaway on Instagram, instructing voters to “Vote early and keep your sticker” so they can show the sticker to the campaign in exchange for a token to Sugar Hill Creamery, a handmade ice cream business located in Harlem.The campaign does not require proof of voting for Avila Chevalier. Federal law states that “offers to make an expenditure to any person, either to vote or withhold his vote, or to vote for or against any candidate” is illegal.The token, which is only redeemable at Sugar Hill Creamery locations, can be used in exchange for one cup of ice cream.
