Interesting stuff here–

On or about March 17, 2026, an Allentown resident – John Santana – observed that Crosswell’s red box content was set to password-protected, rendering it inaccessible to the general public. Santana also followed up four days later, only to find the red box still private. According to the complaint filed with the FEC, it “created a situation in which any outside group accessing and using this content could only have done so through direct or indirect coordination with the campaign,” in violation of FEC regulations.

The complaint also states that Crosswell “potentially facilitated illegal in-kind contributions to (his) campaign from outside groups operating on non-public materials.”

Campaigns post specific messaging requests, video footage, and voter targeting information (e.g., demographics) on their websites, often using a distinctively marked red box, notes the Campaign Legal Center. Often times, coded language is used, such as “see” for TV ads, “hear” for radio, or “read” for direct mail, to guide the outside group.

Redboxing also commonly involves posting footage and photos of the candidate, as well as strategy tips about the race. A super PAC supporting the candidate then uses the footage and photos along with the campaign-requested messaging in its ads.

I’ll say two things here- red boxes are completely legal. Second, and probably more importantly, there’s no reason on God’s Green Earth to put a password on your red box. Campaigns don’t use their websites to store their content. The only reason to have a red box is to make the information available to your outside supporters via one way communication. I have no idea what Crosswell, or for that matter Carol, had a password on their red box. Maybe they weren’t meant to be public yet for some reason. Or maybe they were giving the password out, as the complaint suggests. I don’t know how you ask the FEC to go find probable cause to investigate that though. I thought you needed probable cause to investigate.

Another thing that just peaked my “spidey sense” a bit here- the individual filing the complaint is an operative. It’s not clear who he’d be working for though. He’s worked for the PA Dems (So maybe Brooks?), Working Families Party (Brooks), Make the Road (Brooks? I haven’t seen who they’re supporting), and interned for former Congresswoman Susan Wild. Regardless of who he did this on the behalf of, he caught something here. Putting a password on a red box is weird.