A Russian-American woman accused of illegally acting as a Russian agent made only one small political donation — and it was to the 2020 presidential campaign of former Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, according to campaign finance records.
Elena Branson, also known as Elena Chernykh, was charged this week with illegally promoting pro-Russia policies at the direction of top Kremlin officials without registering as a foreign agent, the Justice Department said Tuesday. Branson, who is accused of running a Russian "propaganda center" in New York for nearly a decade, only donated to Gabbard during that period, according to Federal Election Commission records first flagged by The Daily Beast.
