Rally Forge is a right-leaning political consulting firm owned by Arizona politician Jake Hoffman(R) that gained notoriety for its social media tactics in the 2018 and 2020 election. ¹

Facebook determined that Rally Forge set up hundreds of fake accounts during the presidential race in support of then-President Donald Trump, a Republican, and in opposition to Democratic candidate Joe Biden. ²

Background

Rally Forge was a right-leaning for-profit organization owned by Arizona state Sen. Jake Hoffman (R-Queen Creek) active in the 2018 and 2020 election cycles. ³

As of December 2020, the firm’s website said it builds movements and will “only work with those that fight for truth.” The organization casts itself as different from political consultants, asserting that it affirms that principles are more important than profit. ⁴

As of April 2024, it is not clear that Rally Forge is still operating. It has not reported financial activity since 2020, and the website directs to a placeholder domain. ⁵ The most recent comment to the media from Rally Forge appears to be from 2021. ⁶

Political Activity

Rally Forge registered with the Arizona Corporation Commission as an LLC in 2016. Jake Hoffman, who was later elected as a Republican member of the Arizona State Senate, is listed as its statutory agent. ⁷ Before Hoffman was elected to the Arizona legislature, he was a member of the Queen Creek town council. ⁸

The Arizona Republic reported in 2020 that the Rally Forge website “is sparse, sharing no details about who it works for or who runs the firm.” The website reportedly said, “We only build movements that will help restore our nation to its rightful place as the shining city atop the hill. We only work with those that fight for truth. People over politics. Principles over profit.” ^{9 10}

During the 2020 election cycle, Rally Forge had $1,192,832 in receipts, according to OpenSecrets. The top donors were Turning Point Action, which spent $985,332 on the firm, and the Republican Party of Arizona, which spent $207,500. In 2018, KelliPAC paid Rally Forge $50,000. In 2016, the organization was paid $316,634 by RallyPAC, and $120,000 by KelliPAC. OpenSecrets does not have information on Rally Forge after the 2020 election cycle. ¹¹

Facebook Controversy

In October 2020, Facebook banned Rally Forge, accusing the organization of paying teenagers to create fake accounts and pages. The posts were designed to support Republican then-President Donald Trump and oppose his Democratic challenger in that year’s presidential election, former Vice President Joe Biden. ¹²

Rally Forge allegedly hired other people who used fake names and profile pictures when commenting on political content. ¹³

The fake accounts had made $1 million in ad buys before Facebook banned them. The accounts had more than 400,000 likes on Facebook and Instagram. The accounts coordinated and shared each other’s posts to dismiss concerns about COVID-19 and raise concerns about mail-in voting. ¹⁴

Facebook announced that Rally Forge created “thinly veiled personas” and that the names were variations of the people behind them. The accounts commented on news stories from the Washington Post, Fox News, MSNBC, CNN, and the New York Times. ¹⁵

Facebook removed 262 Facebook accounts, 55 pages, and 76 Instagram accounts that were tied to Rally Forge. ¹⁶ Rally Forge CEO Jake Hoffman also lost his Facebook account. He was also suspended by Twitter at the time. ¹⁷

Facebook said that Rally Forge was working on behalf of Turning Point USA. ¹⁸ Turning Point Action confirmed in 2020 that it had retained Rally Forge. ¹⁹

Later information revealed the Rally Forge bought Facebook ads that promoted Green Party candidates during the 2018 midterm election in an attempt to pull votes away from Democratic Party. The group purported to call itself America Progress Now. ²⁰

An internal investigation by Facebook found that the administrators for America Progress Now page were Jake Hoffman, Connor Clegg, and Colton Duncan, who were also the Facebook page administrators for Turning Point USA. Facebook determined the 2018 ads it did not violate their policies, the Guardian reported. The left-leaning Campaign Legal Center filed a Federal Election Commission complaint against American Progress Now, but the FEC voted to dismiss the complaint. ²¹

Hoffman told Business Insider in 2021 that America Progress Now was a client in 2018, and said that while he had placed ads on behalf of America Progress Now, he was not responsible for funding them. ²²

1. “Rally Forge.” Open Corporates. Accessed April 24, 2024. https://opencorporates.com/companies/us_az/L20935585
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3. “ Rally Forge.” Open Corporates. Accessed April 24, 2024. https://opencorporates.com/companies/us_az/L20935585
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6. McLaughlin, Kelly and Lahut, Jake. “A pro-Trump group bought Facebook ads for Green party candidates during the 2018 midterm elections to try and split the Democratic vote, The Guardian reported.” Business Insider. June 11, 2021. Accessed April 24, 2024. https://www.businessinsider.com/pro-trump-group-bought-green-party-ads-2018-report-says-2021-6
7. Leingang, Rachel. “Candidate for Arizona Legislature gets suspended and firm gets banned from social media.” Arizona Republic. October 9, 2020. Accessed April 24, 2024. https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/arizona/2020/10/09/jake-hoffman-candidate-arizona-legislature-suspended-firm-rally-forge-banned/5940817002/
8. Leingang, Rachel. “Candidate for Arizona Legislature gets suspended and firm gets banned from social media.” Arizona Republic. October 9, 2020. Accessed April 24, 2024. https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/arizona/2020/10/09/jake-hoffman-candidate-arizona-legislature-suspended-firm-rally-forge-banned/5940817002/
9. Leingang, Rachel. “Candidate for Arizona Legislature gets suspended and firm gets banned from social media.” Arizona Republic. October 9, 2020. Accessed April 24, 2024. https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/politics/arizona/2020/10/09/jake-hoffman-candidate-arizona-legislature-suspended-firm-rally-forge-banned/5940817002/
10. “Rally Forge.” Zoom Info. Accessed April 24, 2024. https://www.zoominfo.com/c/rally-forge-llc/453642661
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13. Overly, Steven. “Facebook bans firm behind Turning Point’s election troll farm.” Politico. October 8, 2020. Accessed April 24, 2024. https://www.politico.com/news/2020/10/08/facebook-turning-point-election-troll-427985
14. Vega, Nicolas. “Facebook bans Charlie Kirk-linked firm behind teen troll farm.” New York Post. October 8, 2020. Accessed April 24, 2024. https://nypost.com/2020/10/08/facebook-bans-charlie-kirk-linked-firm-behind-teen-troll-farm/
15. Sandler, Rachel. “Facebook Bans Marketing Firm That Made Fake Accounts For Conservative Nonprofit Turning Point Action.” Forbes. October 8, 2020. Accessed April 24, 2024. https://www.forbes.com/sites/rachelsandler/2020/10/08/facebook-bans-marketing-firm-that-made-fake-accounts-for-conservative-nonprofit-turning-point-action/?sh=30dcc63a5dae
16. Overly, Steven. “Facebook bans firm behind Turning Point’s election troll farm.” Politico. October 8, 2020. Accessed April 24, 2024. https://www.politico.com/news/2020/10/08/facebook-turning-point-election-troll-427985
17. Vega, Nicolas. “Facebook bans Charlie Kirk-linked firm behind teen troll farm.” New York Post. October 8, 2020. Accessed April 24, 2024. https://nypost.com/2020/10/08/facebook-bans-charlie-kirk-linked-firm-behind-teen-troll-farm/
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20. Wong, Julia Carrie. “Revealed: rightwing firm posed as leftist group on Facebook to divide Democrats.” The Guardian. June 11, 2021. Accessed April 24, 2024. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2021/jun/11/facebook-ads-turning-point-usa-rally-forge
21.  Wong, Julia Carrie. “Revealed: rightwing firm posed as leftist group on Facebook to divide Democrats.” The Guardian. June 11, 2021. Accessed April 24, 2024. https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2021/jun/11/facebook-ads-turning-point-usa-rally-forge
22. McLaughlin, Kelly and Lahut, Jake. “A pro-Trump group bought Facebook ads for Green party candidates during the 2018 midterm elections to try and split the Democratic vote, The Guardian reported.” Business Insider. June 11, 2021. Accessed April 24, 2024. https://www.businessinsider.com/pro-trump-group-bought-green-party-ads-2018-report-says-2021-6