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Where Mayoral Candidates Are Getting Their Money & What They're Spending It On
By
David Cruz
and
Jacob Dobkin
Published Mar 17, 2021
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By
David Cruz
and
Jacob Dobkin
Published Mar 17, 2021
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Candidates in the race for mayor are amassing fortunes as they sprint to the June 22nd primary, with figures from the city Campaign Finance Board showing $23 million raised at the mid-point of the election cycle.
The numbers—analyzed by Gothamist and presented in the following data graphs—tell a story about the strength of the CFB's signature 8-to-1 matching funds program, which aims to help small-time candidates compete against deep-pocketed rivals. But they also tell us where the candidates stand when it comes to fundraising (with and without the matching programs), the number of donors for each candidate, the average donation, and what exactly they are spending this money on.
While the fundraising figures reveal the health of a campaign, arguably the more interesting aspect of a candidate's war chest is just what exactly they're spending their money on. The below chart shows a candidate's spending habits, with Raymond McGuire placing nearly 27% of his campaign wealth on consultants to help advise him on a path to victory.
While Maya Wiley also included campaign consultants on her expenditure list, she was extremely generous to her campaign workers when compared to the rest of the candidates, spending $693,750, representing 23% of his campaign coffers.
All candidates spent on campaign fundraising agents hired to funnel monies toward a campaign, with McGuire spending $570,630, the most of any candidate, to Carlos Menchaca, who spent the least at $3,885.
READ MORE: Here's How Much Mayoral Candidates Claim To Have Raised So Far
When it came to early advertising, Donovan had outspent his challengers on that front, spending $441,341 very early in the race (usually, those ads begin to surface toward the final weeks before the primary). McGuire also earmarked money for advertising, spending $88,545 on radio ads. The two also ran TV ads.
Listen to David Cruz on "All Things Considered" discussing the latest filings:
Meanwhile, the biggest ticket item on Eric Adams's list is $124,983 on office expenses, by far the most of any candidate. Some examples of office expenses as laid out in the CFB's handbook are rent, utilities, and office furniture for campaign headquarters.
The following breakdown shows just what exactly is left over from candidates, with McGuire already burning through half his money. Adams and Stringer are holding onto their cash more, having spent just over $1 million three months before the primary:
Our next chart shows who is donating to a candidate's campaign by the type of job they put down on their contribution forms. For McGuire, the bulk of his contributors are investors, CEOs, and the unemployed. A deeper look into McGuire's campaign finances shows these unemployed donors are wealthy, with at least 20 donors contributing $5,100 each. Among McGuire's well-heeled donors are Coca-Cola executive Shahara Ahmad-Llewellyn; Peloton executive Carolyn Tisch Blodgett (and a member of the Tisch family); and millionaire Malaak Compton-Rock, the ex-wife of comedian Chris Rock.
READ MORE: Leveling The Political Playing Field: The Campaign Finance Board Explained
The real estate sector is making a dent with its spending on this race, with McGuire benefitting the most. Under the filings, McGuire has collected $115,732 from realtors, followed by Adams with $89,610, and Stringer—who has been critical of the real estate sector—with $73,815.
The size of a donation offers a socioeconomic look at just how a candidate's campaign is being powered. In the chart below, candidate Dianne Morales is receiving proportionally the most small-dollar donations than any other candidate in the race. It doesn't necessarily mean that the number of small-dollar donors is higher than another candidate (Andrew Yang appears to have claimed that distinction), but paints a general picture of the financial background for the donors. One can apply that metric to the McGuire campaign, where 89% of his donations have been of $1,000 or more. Adams is not too far behind, with 69% of donors giving $1,000 or more as well.
While candidates are benefitting from outside funding sources, New York City residents have been good to candidates, particularly those in Manhattan's Upper West Side and Upper East Side, the epicenter of where the largest campaign contributions are originating. Between both neighborhoods—which include the ZIP codes of 10025, 10024, 10023, and 10021—$2.3 million in donations have been collected, representing 10% of the total number of funds given.
Across the city, Adams has enjoyed considerable financial support, becoming the top fundraiser in most ZIP codes. Donovan has gotten support from his home base in Park Slope, where residents have contributed $110,913 to his campaign, more than any candidate in that neighborhood.
Check out just how the candidates are faring across the city:
Candidates have also attracted donors from outside the city, with candidate Sara Tirschwell receiving the most outside cash, with 58%. The percentage of outside money is often an indicator of how strong their support is from the inside. However, it doesn't give a full picture in terms of just how many donors an individual candidate has.
Next month, the CFB will confirm just who will receive a campaign finance bump from this latest filing at their April 15th meeting.
Tagged
mayoral race
election 2021
campaign finance board
David Cruz
David is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
Read more
Jacob Dobkin
Jake Dobkin co-founded Gothamist with Jen Chung. In 2019, Jake released Ask a Native New Yorker, a book based on his Gothamist advice column.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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