Sean Duffy’s son-in-law took campaign cash from contractor whose Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool project turned green

A 26-year-old Republican candidate for Wisconsin’s 7th Congressional District accepted campaign contributions from the owner of a company that attempted to install a water-purification system at the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in Washington D.C. before algae blooms turned the iconic pool a vibrant shade of green. 

Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy’s son-in-law, Michael Alfonso, is running for his father-in-law’s old congressional seat. Alfonso is married to Duffy’s daughter. 

Alfonso, who has faced scrutiny within his own party for lack of experience and nepotism, accepted $5,000 in campaign contributions from John Cafaro, according to the July 2026 FEC report. 

Cafaro is the ultimate owner of the Ohio business Greenwater Service of Brookfield, which received a no-bid contract from President Donald Trump earlier this year, according to the New York Times. 

The National Park Service bypassed the competitive-bidding process that is typically required and awarded Cafaro’s firm a $1.7 million contract to help rehabilitate the reflecting pool. The Interior Department has said contracts for the project were fast-tracked in order to try and complete work before the July 4 celebrations marking America’s 250th anniversary. 

Cafaro, a longtime Republican donor whom Trump has described as a “fantastic man,” was once involved in a high-profile bribery scandal. He has also donated to Democrats in the past, and his daughter Capri Cafaro served in the Ohio State Senate as a Democrat from 2007 to 2016.

Following renovations on the pool, the water turned green due to algae blooms rather than the American-flag blue Trump said he wanted. The pool has since been redrained and fenced off as work continues, with some residents being arrested for touching or tampering with the water.

Alfonso, who has been endorsed by Trump, faces four opponents in the Republican primary on Aug. 11. 

His campaign said in a statement: “Every contribution to this campaign is legal and fully disclosed, as required by law. Voters up here won’t be distracted by this pathetic excuse for journalism, and neither is Michael, who has been to every county in WI-07.”