Diego Morales' $90K SUV came from dealership that gave him $65K in campaign donations

Secretary of State Diego Morales and Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith are under scrutiny by state officials after using state funds to buy premium SUVs costing the state around $90,000 each.
In Morales' case, his 2024 GMC Yukon Denali comes from Kelley Automotive Group in Fort Wayne. The dealer has given Morales' campaign $65,000 since 2022.
Morales says it was referred to Kelley Automotive Group by the state and that it was on a list of "state-approved vendors for the vehicle fleet."

When the office of Secretary of State Diego Morales requested the state of Indiana buy him a $90,000 GMC Yukon Denali, a car designed to "immerse yourself in luxury," it already had a car dealership in mind: Kelley Automotive Group.

The Fort Wayne-based dealer was familiar to Morales. Just two months prior, Kelley Automotive Group donated $25,000 to Morales' political campaign.

Kelley Automotive Group, led by big-time Republican donor Thomas Kelley, has donated $65,000 to Morales' political campaign since October 2022, according to Indiana campaign finance records. Morales was elected as secretary of state in 2022 and isn't up for election again until 2026.

Meanwhile, Kelley himself sits on the state's Motor Vehicle Advisory Board with Morales, which advises the secretary of state on matters related to the regulation of automobile dealers in Indiana.

The choice of Kelley Automotive Group, which has donated nearly $375,000 to Indiana Republican-aligned committees and candidates since 2017, raised questions for some people who were already scrutinizing Morales' use of tax dollars to purchase a $90,000 premium SUV last year.

IndyStar reported this week that Morales' vehicle, along with Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith's nearly $88,000 Chevy Tahoe High Country, had inspired bipartisan legislation at the Indiana Statehouse this session aimed at curbing luxury vehicle purchases.

"It's yet another example of what appears to be pay to play," said Julia Vaughn, executive director of nonpartisan government watchdog group Common Cause Indiana. "It's highly inappropriate but not really unexpected from this secretary of state."

Morales is already under scrutiny, including for a recent 10-day trip to India and hiring a relative to a high-paid job.

Morales' general counsel sent an email on Aug. 2 to the Indiana Department of Administration that Kelley Automotive Group was "holding a 2024 Yukon Denali which we have assessed will accommodate our agency needs."

However, Morales' office said that they were referred to Kelley Automotive Group by the state because they're on a list of "state-approved vendors for the state vehicle fleet," according to spokeswoman Lindsey Eaton.

Kelley Automotive Group consists of 12 locations in and around Fort Wayne. The Denali specifically came from Tom Kelley Buick GMC on Grand National Drive in Fort Wayne.

"Staff checked around the state about the availability of a vehicle, and the vendor had a vehicle available on the lot that would fit the agency’s needs," Eaton told IndyStar.

Asked by IndyStar whether Kelley Automotive Group was chosen because of its prior campaign donations to Morales or Kelley's role on the state advisory board, Eaton said "our procurement staff have no involvement with candidate committees or campaigns."

A Black Yukon Denali sits in the Statehouse parking lot. The Secretary of State’s Office spent more than $90,000 on the premium SUV which is driven by Diego Morales.

State spends millions with Kelley Automotive Group

Along with being a frequent GOP donor, Kelley Automotive Group has started doing a substantial amount of business with the state in recent years.

Already this fiscal year, the state has spent nearly $15 million with Kelley Automotive Group, according to the Indiana Transparency Portal. The state spent nearly $10 million at Kelley Automotive Group during the previous year, and $6.4 million in the 2023 fiscal year.

That's a sharp uptick from prior years. Comparatively, the state had only spent about $400,000 with Kelley Automotive Group between July 2019 and June 2022, according to the transparency portal.

Kelley Automotive Group's business with state has grown recently

Already this fiscal year, the state of Indiana has spent nearly $15 million with Fort Wayne-based Kelley Automotive Group, led by President Tom Kelley, on about 230 transactions. There's been a sharp uptick since the 2023 fiscal year.

Purchases by state of Indiana

Kelley Automotive Group's political donations, meanwhile, have gone up and down during the last six years, ranging from about $23,000 in 2019, to $86,000 in 2022 to $58,500 in 2024.

The auto group has mostly donated to GOP candidates and causes, including Gov. Mike Braun, former Gov. Eric Holcomb and the state House and Senate Republican committees, but also over the years it's supported Fort Wayne-based Democratic Rep. Phil GiaQuinta, who is the House minority leader.