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New York's public campaign finance program doles out $5.8 million to candidates
By
Brigid Bergin
Published May 31, 2024
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Photo by Selçuk Acar/Anadolu via Getty Images
By
Brigid Bergin
Published May 31, 2024
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New York’s nascent public campaign finance matching program is doling out millions of dollars to state legislative candidates in its first full election cycle.
So far, 46 state Assembly candidates and eight state Senate candidates have received matching funds ahead of the June 25 primary, totaling more than $5.8 million in public funds sent to political campaigns to date.
Similar to New York City’s 30-year-old public matching program, state candidates must raise a minimum amount of money from a set number of donors and agree to set spending limits to receive matching money from the state to increase their campaign coffers. The public matching system aims to encourage more contributions from a wider pool of people, allowing upstart campaigns to contend with well-funded candidates.
Altogether, 328 candidates registered to participate in the program ahead of the election in November.
The boost in public money comes just a year after state lawmakers sought to water down the new program by lifting the cap on small donations that were eligible for matching funds. Gov. Kathy Hochul vetoed the bill late last year, leaving in place a system that only matches contributions up to $250 from people living in the district for state legislative races.
“It’s been inspiring to see so many candidates sign up for the program this year – more than we typically see for the first run of a small donor matching program,” said Joanna Zdanys, senior counsel at the Brennan Center for Justice, and a leading proponent of the new state program.
Zdanys also applauded Hochul's veto, and said that without it the program would have been weakened by diverting matching matching funds to "deep-pocketed donors" who could already give in excess of the $250 cap.
“The governor’s veto ensured that the program stayed focused on boosting the voices of everyday New Yorkers,” she said.
So far Siela Bynoe, who is running to represent the 6th Senate District in Nassau County that includes Westbury, Garden City and stretches to the south shore at Freeport, tops the list of candidates securing matching donations bringing in a total of $371,903 in public matching funds.
Bynoe, a Democratic Nassau County currently in her fifth term, said the new public matching program reinforces the way she already campaigns.
“I've always run a people-powered campaign,” Bynoe said.
She said the infusion of public matching funds will allow her campaign to reach more voters through social media and direct mail on top of the door-to-door outreach she prefers.
“I look at it as an opportunity to create a to-do list,” Bynoe said about going door-to-door. “It's those conversations that inform my decision-making and where we spend our resources advocating new policy through legislation or through initiatives.”
Bynoe is running in the Democratic primary against Taylor Darling, who currently serves in the state Assembly. Darling has received $169,006 in public matching funds.
Two additional payments from the state to legislative campaigns are scheduled ahead of the primary.
Tagged
new york city
new york state
Politics
Brigid Bergin
Brigid Bergin is an award-winning senior reporter on the People and Power desk. She is fiercely committed to telling stories that help people engage and support democracy. In 2022, she hosted a live, ten-week call-in politics show ahead of the midterm elections called The People's Guide to Power. Brigid's reporting in 2017 included some of the first coverage of a political newcomer now known as AOC. In 2016, she broke the news of a voter purge in Brooklyn just days before New York’s presidential primary, triggering city, state and federal investigations. Brigid also guest hosts The Brian Lehrer Show and All Of It. She graduated from the University at Albany and the CUNY Newmark School of Journalism. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or Signal 917-723-4719.
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