Political vetting is satisfied by exactly one recognised artefact

The requirementstatement

A political brand must hold exactly one of: a Campaign Verify token, an Aegis political vet, or verified 501(c)(3/4/5/6) status.

Severityseverity: BlockingBLOCKINGBreaking this rule gets the submission rejected. There is no partial credit.
When it bitesphase: Gates approvalapprovalGet this wrong and the brand or campaign is refused at registration.
What is checkedobject: the political vetting artefact
Where it liveslayer: BrandBRAND
How Ekas settles itdetectability: External recordEXTERNAL_DATA; The fact that settles it lives in a register we cannot query, such as the IRS file, a postal database, or another provider’s tenant. Reported as a warning with the evidence to check, not as a pass.
What the fix involvesfailureClass: Wait on someone elseTERMINAL_EXTERNAL; Needs an external system or a waiting period, such as IRS propagation, a vetting result, or a carrier queue.
Who requires itauthorities: TCRInfobip
When it appliesapplicabilityText: Applies when the use case is POLITICAL.

Why this rule existsrationale

The three routes are alternatives rather than a checklist, and they are not interchangeable in cost or lead time — Campaign Verify is free and slow, an Aegis vet is paid and faster, and the tax-exempt route is instant if you already hold the status. Choosing the wrong one for the time available is how political campaigns miss their own dates.

How to fix itremediation

Pick the route that fits the calendar: 501(c)(4), (5) or (6) status qualifies immediately at some providers; a Campaign Verify token needs an FEC or state filing and takes days; an Aegis political vet is bought and couriers a PIN. Start whichever one you choose weeks before the send date.

Provider rejection codescodes

The code you get back when this rule is what failed, and whether that provider lets you resubmit.

Provider	Code	Resubmit
TCR	509	Yes
Infobip	9001	Yes

Check this yourselfattestation

No tool can settle this one for you. Here is the check, and what wrong looks like.

Have you chosen one of the three political routes deliberately, and started it far enough ahead of the send date?

1Pick by calendar, not by cost: 501(c)(4), (5) or (6) status qualifies immediately at some providers; a Campaign Verify token needs an FEC or state filing and takes days; an Aegis political vet is bought and couriers a PIN.
2Start weeks before the send date. The Campaign Verify path depends on a filing reference and on post, and neither can be hurried.

What wrong looks like: The cheapest route is chosen in the last fortnight of a cycle. It is also the slowest, and the campaign misses its own date.

Notesnotes

Which artefacts a brand holds is not on the registration. What the user has to do is choose the route deliberately and start it early — the Campaign Verify path in particular depends on a filing reference and on post, neither of which can be hurried.

Rules you will hit next

Other brand rules at the same severity. A registration is judged as a whole, not rule by rule.

BRD-001A legal company name is required for every entity but a sole proprietorBlockingBLOCKING BRD-002Legal name must match the IRS record for the EINBlockingBLOCKING BRD-003Legal name must carry its exact entity suffix as filedBlockingBLOCKING BRD-008Legal name must not carry an appended personal name or roleBlockingBLOCKING BRD-009The legal name field takes the legal name, not the trading nameBlockingBLOCKING BRD-011A legal business name may back only one brand across the whole registryBlockingBLOCKING

All brand rules

BRD-241 is one of 196 brand rules in the 915-rule 10DLC registry. Free to cite under CC BY 4.0.