A GOP challenger to U.S. Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith has launched a website accusing the incumbent Republican of using campaign money for personal vacations and alleging that lobbyist contributions have compromised her loyalty to her home state. 

Sarah Adlakha, who is challenging Hyde-Smith in the Republican primary, recently launched SpendingCindy.com. The website, branded as “The Cindy Files,” lists what Adlakha describes as several luxury trips paid for by Hyde-Smith’s campaign account.

The website lists expenditures at hotels in several locations, including nearly a dozen Las Vegas trips. Among the hotels named are The Venetian and MGM Grand in Las Vegas. The site characterizes these trips as “vacations” rather than campaign-related travel.

In an accompanying op-ed titled “When Your Senator Works for Lobbyists, Not Mississippi,” Adlakha also alleges Hyde-Smith’s family has accompanied her on many of these trips.

“This isn’t campaign travel,” Adlakha wrote. “This is a U.S. Senator using a campaign account — filled with lobbyist cash — like a personal vacation fund.”

Jake Monssen, Hyde-Smith’s campaign manager, did not directly address Adlakha’s allegations, but he said in a statement to Mississippi Today that the senator is a lifelong Mississippian who “raises funds to support her campaign from donors across the country.” 

“We probably even have a few donors from Sarah’s hometown of Chicago,” Monssen said. “Mississippi is a wonderful place to live. We welcome Sarah and her family, and we’re happy that she decided to register to vote here in August of 2024.”

Federal regulations prohibit congressional candidates from spending campaign donations on personal travel. Candidates have some discretion in how they spend donations, but generally, they can only spend them on campaign-related activities.

Adlakha is a physician who lives in Ocean Springs. According to her website, she moved to Mississippi after completing her medical school residency. Hyde-Smith, who was first appointed to the Senate in 2018 by former Gov. Phil Bryant and later elected to a full term, is seeking reelection this year.

Adlakha and Hyde-Smith will compete in the GOP primary on March 10. Three people are competing in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate: Scott Colom, Albert Littell and Priscilla Till. The party nominees will compete against Ty Pinkins, an independent candidate, on Nov. 3.