Pennsylvania postal worker Richard Hopkins took a financial hit after coming forward with ballot back-dating allegations, but fortunately for him, there’s crowdfunding.
Mr. Hopkins, 32, had raised as of Tuesday more than $233,000 on Give Send Go, the Christian crowdfunding site where he posted a campaign last week after being suspended without pay from his job and kicked off GoFundMe.
“Your donations are going to help me now that I have been put on unpaid leave from my job in Erie and have been ostracized by most of my coworkers,” said Mr. Hopkins on his page. “I hope to get a new start in a place I feel safe and continue supporting my children while I find out what comes next.”
He added that his employer, the Erie Post Office, “has already been threatening my employment and trying to silence me. I am scared for myself, my family and those closest to me.”
Mr. Hopkins, who first made his allegations anonymously to Project Veritas, said that mail carriers were told to collect and turn in late ballots, and that he overheard his postmaster and supervisor talking about backdating ballots received after Nov. 3, which the postmaster has denied.
House Oversight Committee Democrats said Mr. Hopkins recanted his allegations in an interrogation with federal investigators, which Mr. Hopkins denies, while the committee’s ranking Republicans have demanded all documents related to the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General investigation.
GoFundMe, the top crowdfunding platform, took down Mr. Hopkins’ campaign after it had collected $130,000 and refunded the contributions. The website did not respond to a request for comment on why it did so.
Mr. Hopkins was placed on “off-duty/non-pay status” on Nov. 10 pending the investigation into his allegations, according to a letter posted online.
Project Veritas president James O’Keefe touted Monday a clarification from app creator William LeGate, who had accused Project Veritas of paying Mr. Hopkins $130,000 for his claims.
Mr. O’Keefe, who said that Project Veritas did not pay Mr. Hopkins “anything,” reported that Mr. LeGate deleted the tweet and retweeted, “Clarification: Project Veritas claims that $130K was raised for him via GoFundMe—regardless, $130K was raised and he claimed voter fraud.”
Mr. LeGate later tweeted that making the Project Veritas “Wall of Shame” was a “badge of honor—it’s Project Veritas we’re talking about, after all.”
Other Project Veritas whistleblowers have also raised money on crowdfunding.
“These whistleblowers take tremendous risks when they come forward and these risks are not just to their career, but their friendships and people in their family,” said PV communications director Neil W. McCabe. “The fact that people want to support them is a good thing.”
• Valerie Richardson can be reached at vrichardson@washingtontimes.com.
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