Latest news with #CityCampaignFinanceBoard
New York Post
5 days ago
- Business
- New York Post
Mayor Eric Adams once again denied public funds for NYC re-election bid while Mamdani, Sliwa granted millions
4 Mayor Eric Adams was once again denied matching funds in his re-election bid. Lev Radin/Shutterstock Mayor Eric Adams' re-election bid was denied matching funds once again — this time losing out on $3 million as the city's campaign finance watchdog accused his camp of obstruction. The City Campaign Finance Board hinted the mayor, who is running as an independent in the November election, may never see a dime as it believes his first campaign for City Hall in 2021 may have violated the law. 'The board determined Mayor Adams campaign has failed to demonstrate eligibility for public funds payments at this time, on two grounds. One, failure to provide requested information and two, reason to believe the campaign has violated the law with respect to the failure to provide requested information,' said Board Chair Frank Schaffer. 4 James Keivom 'The board finds the campaign has provided incomplete and misleading information to the CFB, and has impeded the CFB staff's ability to complete its investigation,' Schaffer said of the regulatory body's ongoing probe into alleged misconduct during Adams' 2021 campaign. The board has repeatedly refused to allow Adams' re-election bid to cash in on the city's generous 8-to-1 matching funds program, starting in December, when it first cut the mayor off from the program. It has cited both Adams' since-dismissed federal indictment on bribery and corruption charges, and his team's refusal to answer a number of outstanding demands for documentation about fundraising. The campaign has maintained that it is up to date with the board's requests. It expected the spigot of taxpayer cash to be turned on after securing a win in court last month, when a judge ruled Adams could not be denied funds based on the past criminal case. 4 Democratic candidate Zohran Mamdani brought in an additional $1.6 million, bringing his general election total to over $2.5 million. REUTERS 'We are reviewing all legal options, including formal action to compel the release of public matching funds,' said campaign spokesperson Todd Shapiro. 'We will not allow a vague and bureaucratic process to undermine the democratic right of our supporters to participate in this election.' The denial delivers another blow to Adams, who is struggling to recover from poor approval numbers and the political fallout from his case dismissal. His re-elect bid pulled in a massive $1.5 million haul after socialist Zohran Mamdani's upset win in the June Democratic primary, bringing Adams' total fundraising to over $6 million in private donations. Hizzoner is within $2 million of the $8 million fundraising threshold, and the CFB estimates he has about $4.27 million left to spend as of July. At the same time, the board approved $1.68 million in matching funds for Mamdani and signed off on $1.91 million for GOP nominee Curtis Sliwa. 4 GOP nominee Curtis Sliwa brought in $1.9 million. Stephen Yang Mamdani maxed out his fundraising in the primary, bringing in over $7 million. The latest campaign boost brings his cash on hand to over $5 million, while Sliwa has over $2 million to spend with the new matching funds. Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who is running as an independent after his embarrassing defeat to Mamdani in the Dem primary, did not fundraise during the last period, according to his campaign. As of July 15, he had $1.17 million to spend of his cash from the primary race. Independent Jim Walden was also granted $237,000 in taxpayer money for the general election, bringing his account balance to around $1.6 million.
Yahoo
03-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Cuomo loses out on nearly $3M in public campaign funds over digital payment flubs
Ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo lost out on nearly $3 million in public matching public funds in his comeback bid for New York City mayor — because his campaign couldn't follow instructions on how to submit digital payments, new emails show. Cuomo staffers appeared to have brushed off the City Campaign Finance Board's repeated recommendations not to use Apple or Google Pay to solicit donations without prior approval — and to stay on top of online contributions — according to communications reviewed by The Post. The campaign was emphatically told on March 3 — two days after Cuomo announced he was running for mayor — that donations 'cannot be accepted' by the tap phone payments and that 'Electronic Funds Transfers' needed backup affirmation letters confirming each donors' information, the emails show. Campaign attorneys conceded they 'weren't set up' to accept mobile and electronic payments, but said they would charge ahead with taking them anyway. Political candidates usually register their campaigns with the CFB in hopes of becoming eligible for the city's public funds program, in which every $1 of contributions less than $2,100 made by New Yorkers is matched with $8 in taxpayer cash. In order to be eligible for these matching funds, candidates must go through a lengthy process ensuring donors' addresses and payment methods are verified. The board warned the Cuomo team multiple times over the months-long correspondence that to get mobile payments approved, the campaign would have to provide a signed affirmation letter for every such donation. The CFB stressed that while the campaign could still collect those contributions, they would 'not be considered eligible for match with public funds per Board Rules.' The Cuomo camp attempted the major feat of collecting affirmation letters for over 50 donors, but it eventually became clear that the campaign wouldn't be getting all of the required documentation — landing it in hot water with the CFB. On April 11th, four days before the deadline to submit the information, the board dropped the bomb that despite team Cuomo's efforts: 'All contributions collected through the (online) platform, […] are invalid for match due to the lack of compliance with the requirement that the contributor actively agrees to an online affirmation statement.' That prompted a last-minute scramble from the campaign, which sent out email to donors begging for the affirmation letters just two days before the April 15 deadline. The email — which went out the morning of April 13 — came with the subject line line 'Urgent – Action Required' and stressed, 'THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT.' 'We need you to complete the form included in this additional email, TODAY IF AT ALL POSSIBLE. We apologize for the inconvenience, but it is critical that we get these forms back as soon as possible.' But the warning came too late — and cost the ex-gov roughly $2.7 million in matching funds off $332,530 raised. Cuomo's lawyer even asked for concessions the day after the deadline on April 16th, desperately trying to remedy the situation and reverse the CFB's decision. But the CFB doubled down that they had warned the Cuomo team about electronic payments. 'I looked back at our correspondence about the use of Apple Pay and Google Pay for contributions collected through NGP VAN and I mentioned the following: Contributions made (1) by Apple Pay and Google Pay, (2) through NGP VAN and (3) without the address verification and ZIP code checks performed are permissible. However, these contributions will not be considered eligible for match with public funds per Board Rules,' the CFB's campaign advisor said. The trouble doesn't seem to have ended there – potentially bleeding over into the CFB's next round of matching funds – which are set to be released May 23. As recently as April 18, Cuomo's team signaled ongoing troubles with the pesky affirmation letters – and appeared to still be attempting to find a way to use the payment methods. Cuomo spokesman Rich Azzopardi said a 'technical software error' was to blame for the campaign losing out on the majority of the matching funds. He also said that the snafus with Apple and Google Pay could be attributed to it being the early days of the campaign — and that staffers quickly learned the payment methods would not be accepted. 'The cures have been made,' Azzopardi added. 'We're getting matching funds in 10 days.'
New York Post
02-05-2025
- Business
- New York Post
Cuomo loses out on nearly $3M in public campaign funds over digital payment flubs
Ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo lost out on nearly $3 million in public matching public funds in his comeback bid for New York City mayor — because his campaign couldn't follow instructions on how to submit digital payments, new emails show. Cuomo staffers appeared to have brushed off the City Campaign Finance Board's repeated recommendations not to use Apple or Google Pay to solicit donations without prior approval — and to stay on top of online contributions — according to communications reviewed by The Post. The campaign was emphatically told on March 3 — two days after Cuomo announced he was running for mayor — that donations 'cannot be accepted' by the tap phone payments and that 'Electronic Funds Transfers' needed backup affirmation letters confirming each donors' information, the emails show. Advertisement Campaign attorneys conceded they 'weren't set up' to accept mobile and electronic payments, but said they would charge ahead with taking them anyway. Political candidates usually register their campaigns with the CFB in hopes of becoming eligible for the city's public funds program, in which every $1 of contributions less than $2,100 made by New Yorkers is matched with $8 in taxpayer cash. 4 Former Governor Andrew Cuomo (pictured) is the frontrunner for the democratic nomination in the NYC Mayor's race. John Garry for NY Post Advertisement 4 The Campaign Finance Board repeatedly warned the Cuomo team about using the mobile payments. Koshiro K – In order to be eligible for these matching funds, candidates must go through a lengthy process ensuring donors' addresses and payment methods are verified. The board warned the Cuomo team multiple times over the months-long correspondence that to get mobile payments approved, the campaign would have to provide a signed affirmation letter for every such donation. The CFB stressed that while the campaign could still collect those contributions, they would 'not be considered eligible for match with public funds per Board Rules.' Advertisement The Cuomo camp attempted the major feat of collecting affirmation letters for over 50 donors, but it eventually became clear that the campaign wouldn't be getting all of the required documentation — landing it in hot water with the CFB. On April 11th, four days before the deadline to submit the information, the board dropped the bomb that despite team Cuomo's efforts: 'All contributions collected through the (online) platform, […] are invalid for match due to the lack of compliance with the requirement that the contributor actively agrees to an online affirmation statement.' 4 The candidate for Mayor lost out on millions in matching funds due to the mobile payment snafu. Michael Nagle That prompted a last-minute scramble from the campaign, which sent out email to donors begging for the affirmation letters just two days before the April 15 deadline. Advertisement The email — which went out the morning of April 13 — came with the subject line line 'Urgent – Action Required' and stressed, 'THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT.' 'We need you to complete the form included in this additional email, TODAY IF AT ALL POSSIBLE. We apologize for the inconvenience, but it is critical that we get these forms back as soon as possible.' But the warning came too late — and cost the ex-gov roughly $2.7 million in matching funds off $332,530 raised. 4 The next round of funding by the CFB will be announced May 23rd. Michael Nagle Cuomo's lawyer even asked for concessions the day after the deadline on April 16th, desperately trying to remedy the situation and reverse the CFB's decision. But the CFB doubled down that they had warned the Cuomo team about electronic payments. 'I looked back at our correspondence about the use of Apple Pay and Google Pay for contributions collected through NGP VAN and I mentioned the following: Contributions made (1) by Apple Pay and Google Pay, (2) through NGP VAN and (3) without the address verification and ZIP code checks performed are permissible. However, these contributions will not be considered eligible for match with public funds per Board Rules,' the CFB's campaign advisor said. The trouble doesn't seem to have ended there – potentially bleeding over into the CFB's next round of matching funds – which are set to be released May 23. Advertisement As recently as April 18, Cuomo's team signaled ongoing troubles with the pesky affirmation letters – and appeared to still be attempting to find a way to use the payment methods. Cuomo spokesman Rich Azzopardi said a 'technical software error' was to blame for the campaign losing out on the majority of the matching funds. He also said that the snafus with Apple and Google Pay could be attributed to it being the early days of the campaign — and that staffers quickly learned the payment methods would not be accepted.
