Former Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo was refused more than $ 600,000 in public matching funds on Monday after the New York City Campaign Finance Board discovered that he probably had illegal coordination with a Super PAC to support his campaign for mayor.
Mr. Cuomo first wound When he placed on his campaign website, it seemed to be a number of detailed expenditure instructions for everyone who hopes to help. The Super Pac, Fix the City, began to be broadcast an advertisement Only a few days later, that seemed to adapt to some of those requests, which, following themes and data points, rejected.
The tactics in question, known as red-boxing, has become common in federal varieties as a way to bypass anti-coordination rules. But the New York City Campaign Finance Board has explicitly warned about it.
Mr Cuomo still received $ 1.5 million in public matching funds, although he was theoretically qualified for $ 2.1 million. But the board decided to withhold $ 622,056 – the amount that the Super PAC paid for the advertisement – because it said that there was “reason to assume” that the television commercial was “not independent of the Cuomo campaign.”
Rich Azzopardi, a spokesperson for Mr Cuomo, said in a statement that the campaign would work to solve the problem with the board.
“Our campaign has carried out full compliance with the campaign funding laws and rules, and everything on our website was assessed and approved by our legal team prior to publication,” he said, adding that other candidates had published similar information online. “We look forward to making that clear when we respond to the provisional ruling of the board and receive the full matching funds to which the campaign is entitled.”
Mr Cuomo leads in polls in the race of the volatile mayor only six weeks prior to the Primary of 24 June. Repair the city, which is run by an old Cuomo-Loyalist who was once his right hand, has raised more than $ 7 million.
Mr. Cuomo has a message of competence, but his campaign has made a series of mistakes. He initially received public matching funds last month. His campaign said there was a “technical software fault” that would be resolved quickly.
When, not long after Mr. Cuomo’s campaign had posted information on his website that seemed to be aimed at the Super PAC, the Campaign Finance Board sent a warning to every city campaign about new rules that limit cooperation. Mr. Cuomo then got the webpage with the instructions at the end of last week.
A spokeswoman for Fix the City, who has defended his independence, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Zellnor Myrie, a democratic mayor candidate who evoked an investigation into the Red Box of Mr Cuomo last week, said that the behavior was consistent with earlier episodes in which Mr Cuomo pushed the limits of campaign financing or other ethical rules.
“As Donald Trump repeatedly undermines our judicial system, Democrats need a leader in the town hall that is an example of integrity and the rule of law,” said Mr. Myrie. “Not someone who runs the law for personal gain.”
The board also voted on Monday to keep holding on Millions of dollars in matching funds by mayor Eric Adams about concern about the fundraising practices that are described against him in the federal corruption case. Even after the charges were dropped under pressure from the Trump administration, the Campaign Finance Board withheld the money.
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