A former fundraising consultant to Sen. Elizabeth Dole (R-N.C.) pleaded guilty Wednesday to mail fraud, admitting he embezzled more than $174,000 from two committees associated with Dole’s campaign.

Earl Allen Haywood, 40, faces up to 20 years in prison when he is sentenced May 26. Haywood entered a guilty plea to a mail fraud count before U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman.

Haywood served as an assistant treasurer to the Dole North Carolina Victory Committee and also raised money for North Carolina’s Salute to George W. Bush Committee, which spread its funds between Dole, the North Carolina Republican Party and Rep. Robin Hayes (R-N.C.).

Haywood admitted to stealing $155,750 from the Dole Victory Committee account and $18,975 from the Salute committee account.

He accomplished the scheme by writing unauthorized checks from the committee accounts and naming himself as the payee. Haywood did not report the payments to the Federal Election Commission on the reporting forms he prepared. Instead, he deposited the checks into his own personal account.

Haywood attempted to conceal the fraud by labeling many of the checks in the check registry as “postage” for official business.

As part of his plea, Haywood agreed to make an initial restitution payment of $50,000 to the committees and repay the remaining $124,725.