By Jon Campbell and Jimmy Vielkind | Gothamist |New York Public News Network
A New York state judge cleared the way for Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman to receive up to $3.5 million in public matching funds that Republican leaders are hoping will provide a jolt to his campaign against Gov. Kathy Hochul.
State Supreme Court Justice Denise Hartman’s ruling Tuesday marks a decisive victory for Blakeman, the Nassau County executive who is seeking to unseat the Democratic governor as she seeks a second full term.
Blakeman sued the state Public Campaign Finance Board last month after its Democratic appointees blocked him and several other candidates from participating in the matching funds program, which matches small donations to gubernatorial campaigns with taxpayer money at a 6-to-1 rate. Republicans argued the board’s move was partisan and designed to harm Blakeman’s candidacy.
State Republican Chair Ed Cox said Hartman’s ruling Tuesday will “make it possible, as the campaign finance laws were designed, so he can have a full campaign.”
“This is the right decision, it’s a just decision,” Cox said.
In a statement, Blakeman said, “Nothing will stop us in our mission to save New Yorkers.”
The legal dispute stemmed from a paperwork snafu. The state board ruled Blakeman erred when he filed an application for the program that didn’t include his running mate, Madison County Sheriff Todd Hood. But Blakeman’s attorney argued that the board had already certified him in the program before he selected Todd — and that a joint application form didn’t, and still doesn’t, actually exist.
Hartman, a judge based in Albany County, sided with Blakeman, noting that the board never contacted the candidate to notify him his application was defective.
The judge required the board to give Blakeman and Hood one week to correct their application. She also invalidated the board vote that kicked them out of the matching funds program.
Brian Keegan, the Public Campaign Finance Board’s Democratic co-chair, criticized the judge’s ruling.
“The ruling allows this campaign to address their missed filing months after the deadline, which is why an appeal is likely,” he said in a statement. “The question is whether a campaign seeking public funds gets another chance after failing to meet a mandatory filing deadline on time.”
Larry Sharpe, a libertarian candidate for governor who was also blocked from the program, said Hartman’s decision paved the way for him to also access matching funds.
The state’s matching funds program is in place for the first time in a statewide election cycle this year. Under the law, gubernatorial candidates are able to receive up to $3.5 million in matching funds for the general election.
Hochul declined to participate in the program. Her campaign spokesperson Sarafina Chitika said Tuesday that the governor has received money from more than 20,000 individual donors, and said Blakeman “burns campaign cash on his Trump loyalty tour.”
The funding could provide a significant boost to Blakeman’s campaign, which has struggled to keep up with Hochul’s campaign fundraising prowess.
Blakeman’s campaign had roughly $1.6 million dollars on hand as of mid-March, according to state disclosure records. Hochul had $20.2 million in her campaign account as of January, the last time she was required to report.
Image: Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, at podium, speaks during a news conference in Mineola, N.Y., March 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Philip Marcelo, File)