Uthmeier Subpoenas Democratic Socialists of America Over Alleged Foreign Money, Citing Cuba and China

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has issued an investigative subpoena to the Democratic Socialists of America, saying his office is examining whether the national group or its Florida chapters accepted money or support from Cuba, China or other "foreign sources of concern" barred under state law.

Uthmeier announced the subpoena Nov. 10 in a video and a post on X. It comes one week after the first DSA-backed candidate won a seat in the Florida Legislature, and days after a state terrorist designation forced another advocacy group, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, to shut down its Florida operations.

What the subpoena seeks

Uthmeier said the subpoena was issued under the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act and the state's laws governing the solicitation of funds. "We are examining whether DSA accepted contributions or support from foreign sources of concern, including the regimes in Cuba and China, and whether its fundraising from Florida donors has been fully transparent and lawful," he said in the video, according to Florida Politics and the Florida Phoenix.

On X, he said the office is examining foreign contributions, including from Cuba and China, "tied to their delegations and travel fund solicitations."

The attorney general said investigators will look at recent DSA delegations to Cuba that included national leaders and committee members who met with Cuban government officials, and at a separate DSA delegation that traveled to China. According to Uthmeier, tens of thousands of dollars covered the costs of those trips "and related activities involving Florida chapters." The investigation, he said, will determine whether that money came from foreign governments.

He said the subpoena seeks the documents needed to determine whether DSA is complying with Florida law, and that the inquiry will "follow the facts." The office did not publicly release the subpoena itself, and no charges or civil complaint have been filed. An investigative subpoena is a demand for records, not an accusation that a law was broken.

The legal basis

The probe rests on two sets of laws. The Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act is the state's main consumer protection statute, which the attorney general's office uses to investigate misleading business and fundraising practices. Florida's charitable solicitation laws govern how organizations raise money from Florida residents.

Since July 2025, Florida law has barred organizations that solicit donations from Florida residents from soliciting or accepting contributions from a "foreign source of concern," a category that includes the governments of China and Cuba, Florida Politics reported. The Phoenix identified the measure as SB 700, passed in 2025, and noted that the list of foreign countries of concern also includes North Korea, Russia, Iran, Syria and Venezuela's former Maduro government.

"Our laws prohibit accepting contributions from foreign sources of concern," Uthmeier said. "They require organizations to be honest and transparent about how money is raised and used."

The Cuba trips at the center

A delegation of DSA members, including Floridians, joined a coalition of activist groups such as Code Pink and Progressive International on the "Nuestra America" convoy to Cuba in March, the Phoenix reported. Participants reportedly brought medical and school supplies and solar panels and met with Cuban government officials.

That convoy has already drawn federal attention. In May, federal investigators subpoenaed streamer Hasan Piker and Code Pink co-founder Medea Benjamin over the trip, according to multiple national reports. Those reports did not indicate that DSA itself had been subpoenaed by federal authorities.

For many South Florida voters, including families who fled the Castro government, Cuba remains a defining political issue, and Uthmeier has made the island a recurring focus. In October, his office announced it had secured a state arrest warrant for former Cuban leader Raúl Castro.

DSA's response

DSA has not offered a substantive response. Priscilla Yeverino, the group's communications director, told Florida Politics, "We are aware of the situation and have no comment at this time." A national DSA spokesperson gave the Phoenix the same statement.

DSA lists more than a dozen chapters in Florida and describes its work as focusing on labor organizing, housing and health care.

The political backdrop

The subpoena lands days after an election in which DSA scored gains nationally and a first foothold in Tallahassee. Six DSA candidates won election to Congress last week, the Phoenix reported, and in Hillsborough County, DSA-backed Democrat Ashley Herrmann ousted Republican state Rep. Danny Alvarez in House District 69, winning 52% to 48%.

Herrmann, a climate activist who ran against data centers and for higher teacher pay, joins St. Petersburg City Council member Richie Floyd as the only elected DSA-backed officials serving in Florida, according to the Phoenix. The group's national profile rose sharply after Zohran Mamdani was elected mayor of New York in 2025.

Uthmeier was on the ballot for the first time last week. Appointed attorney general in 2025, he won a full term by defeating Democrat José Javier Rodríguez by less than 2 percentage points, the Phoenix reported.

Part of a pattern of investigations

The DSA subpoena is the latest in a series of investigations Uthmeier has opened into how advocacy groups raise money. In May, his office subpoenaed the Southern Poverty Law Center over alleged deceptive fundraising.

It also follows the state's move against CAIR. Gov. Ron DeSantis and the Cabinet voted Sept. 29 to designate CAIR a domestic terrorist organization under a new state law. The designation took effect Nov. 5, the same day U.S. District Judge Allen Winsor declined to block it, though he barred the state from taking punitive action against the group, its employees or those providing it legal services, WLRN reported. CAIR said it was forced to shut down its advocacy and operations in Florida and plans to appeal. Uthmeier called the ruling a "great win."

"We will enforce the law," Uthmeier said of the DSA inquiry. "We will not allow foreign adversaries to influence Florida through the back door of non-private fundraising."

What's next

DSA must now decide whether to produce the requested records or challenge the subpoena. If the office concludes the group violated the solicitation or consumer protection laws, it could pursue civil remedies, but Uthmeier has not said what penalties he might seek, and no timeline has been announced.

The inquiry is likely to be watched closely by other progressive groups with Florida chapters, and by the incoming Legislature, where Herrmann and an expanded Democratic minority will take their seats when lawmakers reorganize in the coming weeks.