PROVIDENCE – A former Providence City Council candidate and newly elected president of the city’s chapter of the NAACP has been charged with violating state campaign finance laws, according to the R.I. Office of the Attorney General and R.I. State Police.
Gerard Catala, 44, was arraigned Thursday on two charges of failing to file campaign finance reports during the 2022 Providence City Council election. Catala ran for the Ward 9 seat but lost in the primary.
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According to charging documents, he “knowingly and willfully” failed to file the required two reports on his campaign contributions and spending, the release stated.
The R.I. Board of Elections previously referred the matter to the attorney general and state police after attempts to force Catala to file the required reports proved unsuccessful.
Catala has still not filed the two reports, due in August and September 2022, as of Thursday.
He will be rearraigned in District Court in Providence on Jan. 31.
In November, Catala won a tight online election to become president of the Providence NAACP. He unseated the group’s longtime leader, Jim Vincent, by 14 votes.
