Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) has initiated a Thanksgiving turkey giveaway that is linked to her reelection campaign fundraising efforts. In an email, she solicited donations to support the initiative, stating, "Will you chip in $5 or anything you can today to help us bring the joy of the holiday season into homes around NYC this year?" However, the link provided directs contributors to a campaign fundraising page managed by ActBlue, where they are encouraged to make donations that are not tax-deductible as charitable contributions.

Ocasio-Cortez has conducted turkey giveaways since her first year in office, but this year she has altered her approach by requesting funds for her campaign rather than directing donations to community organizations that typically manage turkey drives. Critics, including former City Council Minority Leader Joe Borelli, have expressed concerns that this method conflates campaign activities with charitable work, questioning the ethical implications of such a fundraising strategy.

City Councilman Robert Holden (D-Queens) echoed these sentiments, suggesting that the approach undermines the integrity of charitable initiatives by framing them as campaign fundraising. A review of other New York City politicians' turkey drives revealed that most coordinate directly with local charities or businesses for donations, contrasting with Ocasio-Cortez's method of soliciting funds for her campaign.

Federal Election Commission data indicates that Ocasio-Cortez's campaign made a purchase of $13,101 at a local grocery store shortly before Thanksgiving, potentially for the turkey giveaway. Critics have raised alarms about the transparency of the fundraising process, noting that the FEC does not require politicians to disclose how much they raise or how those funds are allocated when soliciting donations for community organizations.

Ocasio-Cortez's campaign manager stated that the goal is to raise funds to support the turkey giveaway, with any excess funds being used to order more turkeys. However, discrepancies in reported numbers of turkeys distributed in previous years have led to further scrutiny of the campaign's claims. The situation has prompted calls for a thorough investigation into the fundraising practices employed by Ocasio-Cortez's campaign, highlighting the complexities and ethical considerations surrounding the intersection of political fundraising and community support efforts.