Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, who is running for governor of New York this year, has been denied up to $7 million in public matching funds by a state board in a party-line vote.
The New York State Public Campaign Finance Board took a 4-3 vote on Tuesday, with all Democratic members on the panel siding against the GOP gubernatorial nominee. The decision was related to an apparent error in paperwork filed by his running mate, Madison County Sheriff Todd Hood.
Blakeman is running against Gov. Kathy Hochul (D-NY), but he has his work cut out for him ahead of the primary and general elections in light of the lack of public matching funds.
“With the race tightening and her poll numbers sagging, it’s no surprise Kathy Hochul’s handpicked appointee would vote to take away funds from Bruce Blakeman’s campaign,” spokeswoman Madison Spanodemos said in a statement to the Washington Examiner.
One of seven members of the bipartisan board is directly appointed by the governor.
“While it reeks of corruption, no money in the world can hide Kathy Hochul’s record of driving up taxes, rent, utility bills, and insurance premiums,” Spanodemos added.
In New York, public matching funds refer to residents’ small-dollar donations to political candidates that are then matched by the state. Designed to limit large donations and special interests, the state program matches the first $50 at a 12:1 ratio and decreases the rate for higher amounts.
Blakeman qualified for the program shortly after launching his campaign last December, but his running mate was also supposed to file for public financing. Hood failed to do so, but Blakeman’s campaign points out the fact that the form still doesn’t exist.
The election board approved new rules in response to a law that requires state-level candidates to apply for certification jointly, Politico reported on Friday. Therefore, Blakeman and Hood missed a February deadline.
Despite the rule change, Blakeman’s campaign says the state’s website lists Blakeman as an eligible candidate for the public campaign financing program.
The board’s decision to disqualify the Republican from the program may open the door to litigation. Blakeman’s campaign has retained attorney Adam Fusco to explore legal options, Spanodemos confirmed.
In a separate statement, Blakeman accused Hochul of trying to shut down his campaign.
“A board stacked with Democrats, appointed by the same Albany machine that’s terrified of our campaign, is trying to kneecap my campaign before we even reach the summer,” he said in a campaign fundraising email, asking voters for donations after the board’s vote.
Blakeman is running unopposed in the Republican primary after Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) exited the race. Hochul’s once-most formidable opponent, Democratic Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado, also bowed out.
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With less than three months to go before the June 23 primary, Blakeman is closing the gap between himself and Hochul. In a Siena poll released Tuesday, the Republican challenger trails the Democratic incumbent by 13 points. He was 20 points behind her in February.
Blakeman celebrated the new poll results, boasting that his team is “closing the gap at lightning speed” because New Yorkers want a solution to the state’s affordability crisis. The poll surveyed 804 voters registered in New York from March 23 to 26, with a margin of error of 4.2 percentage points.