State GOP: City Council members violated ethics policy. Democrats say it’s baseless.

State Republicans filed ethics complaints against two Democrats on Charlotte’s City Council Thursday, weeks after those Democrats raised questions about a Republican council member’s possible conflict of interest.

Council members Dimple Ajmera and James “Smuggie” Mitchell are accused of wielding their positions for personal gain, according to complaints filed with the city clerk by the North Carolina Republican Party.

Last month, both Ajmera and Mitchell vocally thrust a separate ethics spotlight on Republican City Council member Tariq Bokhari. During a heated July 27 meeting, they and other elected officials questioned how Charlotte administrators — with the help of Bokhari — designed a workforce development initiative backed by federal coronavirus relief money.

But GOP spokesman Tim Wigginton says those attacks were politically motivated, and are a response to Bokhari often clashing with colleagues over police reform and the Republican National Convention.

“It is truly sad to see elected officials abuse their positions of power for private gain,” Wigginton said in a statement Thursday. “By taking these actions today, the North Carolina Republican Party seeks to hold these public officials accountable for their actions.”

Both council Democrats say the GOP attacks are baseless.

Wigginton claims Ajmera has used a series of rezoning cases to garner campaign contributions.

In a phrase that echoes what Ajmera has said publicly about Bokhari, Wigginton says an independent investigation is needed for “transparency, accountability and good stewardship.”

“This is purely a racist, sexist and political attack,” Ajmera said in a statement. “Let me be clear: I’ll not succumb to this pressure to deflect from the real problem of (the) ongoing investigation of (council member) Bokhari. This is an intimidation technique to silence us from holding (him) accountable.”

City spokesman Jason Schneider told the Observer earlier this week that Charlotte has not received a “request for further investigation” into Bokhari. Still, city attorney Patrick Baker told City Council members last week to anticipate an independent investigation soon, once a “valid complaint” was filed properly.

Bokhari on Twitter Thursday evening said he spoke with Baker and “confirmed the fact that I have no active investigations underway.”

Ajmera also said the contributors named in the GOP complaint “are active and traditional donors to many candidates.”

“Most importantly,” she added, “my vote can’t be bought.”

Mitchell is accused of using taxpayer money to visit Detroit sports facilities in November 2018. Mitchell discussed “the need for a trip” with his past and current employer — as well as the Carolina Panthers — before the City Council set aside $110 million in tourism dollars to land a Major League Soccer expansion team, Wigginton claims. Questions about Mitchell’s trip were reported by WBTV last November.

Mitchell on Thursday called the trip “a fact-finding mission for me as we talk about our potential domed stadium for the Carolina Panthers.” He said he was exploring what Detroit did with an entertainment center around its football and hockey stadiums. Charlotte plans to do the same around Bank of America Stadium.

The state GOP also seeks expansive public records — including emails, text messages and other documents involving Ajmera and Mitchell — that would “expose corruption on Charlotte’s City Council.” The request also names communications with Democratic political consultant Dan McCorkle and Dan Roselli, co-founder of Queen City Fintech.

Fintech fight

The Carolina Fintech Hub, a nonprofit led by Bokhari, had been slated to receive $1.5 million for an advanced technology jobs program. Yet City Council members — concerned Bokhari could potentially benefit from taxpayer dollars or create the appearance of a conflict of interest — ultimately barred the Carolina Fintech Hub from participating.

A City Council committee is now reevaluating criteria for the program, which officials acknowledged was swiftly designed as the coronavirus pandemic fueled economic hardship among local businesses.

Mitchell previously said it was disturbing that city staff recommended Carolina Fintech Hub for the program, without seeking bids from other groups that offer employment services.

“It doesn’t look good,” Mitchell said last month. “I’m frustrated with city staff. I’m mad with (Carolina Fintech) for not taking the high road.”

Ajmera also criticized Bokhari and city staff, saying they failed to fully disclose a potential conflict of interest.

“This is about transparency, accountability, the public trust and good stewardship of our public dollars,” Ajmera said at the time.

Top Charlotte administrators, including Baker and city manager Marcus Jones, said the proposed arrangement with Bokhari was not unethical. On Thursday, Bokhari demanded that Ajmera retract her comments about any investigation into his business activities.

“There is no merit that could justify the request of an independent investigation on the activities that have already been reviewed, deemed were compliant with policy, and ultimately never were executed upon by the City,” Bokhari said on Twitter.

But a City Council committee is now reviewing Charlotte’s ethics policies, particularly how elected officials are notified about possible conflicts of interest.

A third party would have managed stipends for participants in the jobs training program — with no money earmarked directly for the Carolina Fintech Hub, according to city documents. Private companies had agreed to hire up to 90 people who completed the five-month training through the hub.

Under the city’s code of ethics policy, Baker will investigate the GOP’s complaints, “unless there is a conflict or significant political concerns that warrant investigation by an independent third party.” Council members could face sanctions, depending on the scope of violations.

This story was originally published August 6, 2020 at 6:10 PM.