The New York City Campaign Finance Board, which oversees a key public campaign matching program, announced Monday that Mayor Eric Adams will not receive over $4 million in matching funds his campaign requested over concerns related to his federal corruption indictment and the campaign noncompliance to the program's rules.
The Board's decision was announced as part of the first public funds payment given to candidates running for office in 2025.
"After thoroughly reviewing all available information, including the details of the indictment of Mayor Adams, the Board has determined there is reason to believe the Adams campaign has engaged in conduct detrimental to the matching funds program," CFB Chairman Frederick Schaffer said in a rare statement explaining the board's decision.
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He added that the Board's explanation behind rejecting Adams' request responded to the great public interest and the "unusual circumstances" surrounding his reelection campaign.
"Our priority remains achieving an equitable and transparent democracy that is accountable to all New Yorkers," Schaffer added.
In a statement, Vito R. Pitta, Adams' 2025 campaign counsel, called the CFB's decision "disappointing" and vowed to challenge the board's decision.
“While today’s ruling by CFB to withhold matching funds at this time is disappointing, we will continue to work with the board to address any issues so that funds can be appropriately disbursed," Pitta said. "The mayor’s campaign continues to have far more resources than his opponents’, and we are very confident we will have the support we need to spend the maximum amount allowable in the upcoming primary.”
Adams currently faces federal corruption charges for illegal campaign contributions and bribes from foreign nationals during his 2021 campaign. He denies any wrongdoing and has pleaded not guilty to the five charges.
Last week, in a series of interviews with two local news channels, Adams did not ruled out running for a second term as a Republican, saying to NY1 that he is "part of the American party."
According to publicly available campaign finance data, Adams leads the race in terms of donations, in part because the mayor has been receiving contributions since February 2022, one month after he was sworn into office.
Adams’s campaign efforts have totaled over $4.1 million in campaign contributions in nearly three years, with just one quarter of the contributions recorded during the past 10 months.
However, his fundraising efforts slowed down on the days leading to his federal indictment. On Sept. 26, when the federal indictment charging Adams with corruption was unsealed, the campaign reported a donation of $250 by an unemployed man from Flushing.
During that same day, City Comptroller Brad Lander, one of Adams' primary rivals, raised $1,530 in monetary contributions. He did not received any matching funds from the Board.
According to the CFB, of 32 candidates that filed paperwork with the Board, only 11 of them are active candidates whose campaigns for NYC mayor have recorded monetary contributions. Only four candidates – Adams, Lander, Zellnor Myrie and Scott Stringer– have received over $100,000 in donations.
Stringer has not officially declared a candidacy for mayor but the CFB reports he has received almost $600,000 in contributions. In his X profile biography, Stringer states he is “exploring a run for NYC Mayor.”
The former NYC Comptroller was the only candidate for mayor who received public funds from the board. Other 14 mayoral candidates participating in the program, including Adams, were ineligible to receive matching funds.
"Our campaign is powered by hardworking New Yorkers from every corner of the city who know we need a proven reformer to put the wheels back on," Stringer said in post on X following the CFB's announcement. "With support from thousands of grassroots donors, we’re building a robust, well-organized operation to spread our message across the five boroughs and get the government back to delivering for people in this city. Let’s do this!"
Stringer's campaign will receive $2,088,571 in matching public funds.
NYC's public matching program gives local candidates the ability to receive an 8-to-1 match for any small-dollar contribution up to $250. The campaign finance board approved public matching funds payments totaling over $4.8 million to 19 candidates, with seven additional payment dates before the primary election in June 2025.
