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Who's funding the NY Democrats' big push? Steve Cohen, Verizon, Airbnb and more.
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Jon Campbell
Published Aug 8, 2024
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Jon Campbell
Published Aug 8, 2024
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Gov. Kathy Hochul and her fellow New York Democrats are betting big on a fundraising push that they say will allow them to open 35 field offices across the state and hire dozens of people on the ground in an effort to retake the U.S. House of Representatives this fall.
Some of the effort's biggest donors are also betting on something else: casinos in the New York City area.
Developers and businesspeople behind proposals to bring casinos to the five boroughs have cut five- and six-figure checks to the New York State Democratic Committee’s accounts since the start of 2023, according to state and federal campaign finance records.
All told, Hochul has helped raise more than $5 million since the start of January for what Democrats are calling the “coordinated campaign,” which is geared toward flipping five Republican-held congressional seats on Long Island, in the Hudson Valley and in the Syracuse area — plus defending two at-risk seats of their own.
The governor has routinely denied that political donations have any effect on her governmental decision-making. During a moderated discussion at the Aspen Institute last week, Hochul said she’s using the state Democratic Party “as the vehicle to make sure that we are victorious.”
“This is a lot of effort on my part,” she said. “Governors don’t usually do this. They don’t usually pay attention unless they’re on the ballot — and I’m not on the ballot, but democracy is on the ballot.”
New York Mets owner is the NY Dems’ biggest donor
Steve Cohen is the state Democratic Committee’s single largest donor, according to a Gothamist analysis of state and federal campaign finance records.
He is known as the billionaire owner of the New York Mets. But he also has considerable business before the state, particularly when it comes to getting a potential casino approved near Citi Field at Willets Point in Queens.
Cohen contributed a total of $235,000 to the state Democratic Party since the start of 2023. That’s on top of $167,500 he gave the party’s committees in the prior two-year cycle and $109,600 he gave in 2018, according to state records.
Since the parking lots surrounding Citi Field are technically parkland, Cohen needs the state Legislature and Hochul to approve a bill to alienate it for his casino bid. He struck out during the 2024 legislative session, when Sen. Jessica Ramos of Queens — a Democrat who represents Willets Point — declined to introduce the bill.
Cohen will try again in 2025. A spokesperson for his investment firm, Point72, declined to comment Wednesday.
Other casino suitors are donating, too
Cohen’s not the only New York City-area casino hopeful giving to the Democratic effort.
Stephen Ross, owner of major developer the Related Companies, is looking to bring a casino to Hudson Yards. He gave $138,600 — the maximum allowed — to the Democrats’ main state campaign account.
Scott Rechler, chair and CEO of RXR Realty, gave $66,700. His company is partnered with Las Vegas Sands on a proposal to bring a casino to Long Island.
SL Green Realty Corp., the major real-estate company with a big portfolio in Times Square, gave $50,000. The developer is teamed up with Caesars on a bid for a casino at 1515 Broadway.
All three — among many other New York City developers — have been regular donors to New York political causes over the years. Real estate donations to Hochul’s gubernatorial campaign, however, have slowed over the past year, Politico reported Wednesday.
The Gaming Facility Location Board, the state entity that will decide who gets the final three casino licenses, is on track to make its decision by the end of 2025.
Verizon, Airbnb give big, despite limits
Under New York state law, corporations are technically restricted to giving no more than $5,000 to state-level political causes a year. But when it comes to state party committees, the sky’s the limit — thanks to “housekeeping” accounts.
The Anheuser-Busch Companies — owner of Budweiser — gave $200,000 to the New York Democrats’ housekeeping account, while Airbnb gave $160,000. Verizon and AT&T both gave $150,000, according to state records.
Molina Healthcare, the health insurer, gave $130,000 to the Democrats, too. Pharmaceutical companies got into the mix, too, including Novartis ($128,000) and AstraZeneca ($10,000).
On the other side, the state GOP’s housekeeping account took in $75,000 from United Refining Inc., whose CEO John Catsimatidis also gave $35,000.
There is no limit on how much you can give to a political party’s housekeeping account, which is money that’s meant to be used on things like central staff and rent for a party headquarters — and not to promote a particular candidate or candidates. But spending from the accounts often spikes near Election Day, regardless.
Good government organizations have long called it a glaring loophole in New York’s campaign finance system.
“It is a really unacceptable dodge around any attempt to control money in politics, and we suffer from it,” said Susan Lerner, executive director of Common Cause New York. “The more money that's spent on an election, the more obvious the problem that the housekeeping accounts present.”
Who’s funding the Republican Party?
The biggest chunks of change to the other party came directly from the family of state Republican Party Chair Ed Cox.
He and his wife — Tricia Nixon Cox, daughter of the late President Richard Nixon — contributed a combined $460,000 to the state GOP’s various committees since the start of 2023, campaign finance records show.
That was only to be outdone by one other person: Cox's brother Howard, who contributed a total of $500,000 to the GOP’s housekeeping committee.
Other six-figure checks to the state Republican Party came from Ronald Lauder, an heir to the Estee Lauder cosmetics fortune and a longtime supporter of conservative causes in New York, and Andrew Saul, a businessman and investor who was President Donald Trump’s social security commissioner.
Lauder contributed a total of $220,000; Saul chipped in $100,000.
For Cox, it was a return to giving to the state GOP. He hadn’t cut a check to the state party since 2019, when Nick Langworthy was the chair. Cox returned to the post in 2023 after previously serving as chair from 2010 until 2019.
The Lauder family split continues
Ronald Lauder has been one of the GOP’s biggest and most consistent donors who has long helped fund the party’s political operation.
In recent years, he helped fund the GOP’s legal team as it battled over the state’s Democrat-drawn congressional map — getting it tossed and replaced for the 2022 election cycle before Democrats successfully fought to make changes last year.
However, Lauder’s relatives are contributing to Democrats.
His nephew William Lauder, chair of the Estée Lauder Companies, gave $50,000 to the New York State Democratic Committee, according to records. He’s given to mostly Democratic causes in the past, including Hochul’s campaign.
And his brother Leonard — also an Estée Lauder heir — gave $10,000. He’s also a big Hochul donor.
Tagged
new york state
Politics
Jon Campbell
Jon Campbell covers the New York State Capitol for WNYC and Gothamist. Prior to that, he covered the Capitol for more than a decade for the USA TODAY Network. He has twice earned the Walter T. Brown Memorial Award, an honor given annually by the Legislative Correspondents Association alumni for outstanding state government coverage. Jon grew up in the Buffalo area and graduated from the University at Albany. Got a tip? Email Jon at [email protected] or Signal at JonCampbellNY.90.
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