The former Democratic Governor of New York, Andrew Cuomo, who left office in disgrace, has been dealt another blow in his bid to become the mayor of New York City.
As the June 24 mayoral primary election draws near, Cuomo's campaign has been denied over $622,000 in public matching funds by the New York City Campaign Finance Board. The board alleges that Cuomo's campaign illegally coordinated with Fix the City, a super PAC that supports his mayoral ambitions.
According to the Daily Caller, Richard Davis, a member of the New York City Campaign Finance Board, stated during a meeting on Monday, "Based on preliminary results of the boards investigation, the board has reason to believe Fix the Citys $622,056 expenditure for an ad distributed on May 4, 2025, was not independent of the Cuomo campaign." He added, "The boards investigation into this matter is ongoing, and we will continue to evaluate the issue of improper coordination."
This setback is the latest in a series of financial hurdles that Cuomo's campaign has faced. In April, the campaign was denied millions in matching funds due to a failure to file the necessary paperwork. Despite these challenges, Fix the City has managed to secure more than $8.7 million in contributions, marking the largest amount ever raised in city elections. In contrast, a PAC supporting Cuomo's main primary opponent, far-left New York State Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani, reported raising almost $106,000 over the past seven weeks.
Rich Azzopardi, a spokesperson for Cuomos campaign, defended their actions, stating, Our campaign has operated in full compliance with the campaign finance laws and rules, and everything on our website was reviewed and approved by our legal team in advance of publication." He added, "We look forward to making that clear when we respond to the Boards preliminary ruling and receiving the full matching funds to which the campaign is entitled.
Despite the controversy surrounding his campaign, Cuomo remains optimistic, with Azzopardi asserting, "In the meantime our campaigns momentum continues unabated: today we receive $1.5 million on top of the over $3.5 million we have raised in 71 days and are gratified to have the broadest coalition of supporters, and lead in every poll with voters in every borough, gender, race and ethnicity."
Cuomo's political career has been marred by scandal. He resigned as New York's governor in 2021 after accusations of sexual harassment from several women and potential impeachment threats from the Democratic-controlled State Assembly. His handling of the COVID-19 pandemic also drew criticism, particularly his administrations decision to prohibit nursing homes from denying entry to patients based on a confirmed or suspected diagnosis of COVID-19. This decision resulted in the death of at least 4,000 New York nursing home residents.
Despite his tarnished reputation, Cuomo appears to be leading his Democratic primary opponents in the race for New York City mayor. A survey from the left-wing think tank Data for Progress released in March showed Cuomo leading in primary polling with 39% of the vote, followed by Mamdani with 15%.
The current Democratic New York City Mayor, Eric Adams, is seeking reelection as an independent and is not participating in the Democratic Primary.
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