October 10, 2026 6:59 am

Tennessee Rep. Ogles Hires Controversial Firm for Campaign Services

Tennessee Rep. Andy Ogles’ campaign paid over $46,000 to Frontline Strategies for digital services. The firm, led by Darian Rafie, tracked rallygoers' phones, raising privacy concerns. Rafie used geospatial tech to collect data from political events, creating ethical concerns over voter privacy.
Ogles campaign paid consultant who tracked rallygoers’ phones
Andy Ogles

Consulting Firm with Controversial Data Practices Hired by Tennessee Rep. Andy Ogles

Tennessee Representative Andy Ogles has enlisted the services of Frontline Strategies, a consulting firm that has drawn attention for its data practices involving voter information. The firm is led by a Republican operative known for unconventional methods of data collection.

Ogles’ campaign, spanning from August 2025 to January 2026, allocated over $46,000 to Frontline Strategies. This Illinois-based firm specializes in digital strategies and fundraising for Republican candidates.

Among the notable figures at Frontline Strategies is Darian Rafie, a former executive in digital advertising. Rafie has contributed to fundraising efforts for both the Republican National Committee and Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign.

In a 2019 interview with OpenDemocracy, Rafie described the use of geospatial technology to covertly gather data from attendees at political rallies.

“There is a lot of stuff to be done with mobile phones and geo-fencing areas,” Rafie stated. “Say there’s a rally somewhere, one of these big Trump campaign rallies. What we’ll do is we’ll draw a polygon around that event, and then we’ll register all the phones that were there.”

In this context, a polygon refers to a customized boundary on a map used to pinpoint phones located within a specified area.

Rafie elaborated, “We follow those phones home. Then we know who they are, and what they do,
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