NYC campaign finance ruling aids establishment hopefuls

January 8, 2010   •  By Jeff Patch
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Need another example that taxpayer financed campaigns can be manipulated to benefit establishment candidates?

A New York Times report yesterday noted that New York City’s campaign finance board ruled that candidates can use money raised for a previous campaign to qualify for matching funds for a future campaign. Guess who that benefits?

And that is good news, in particular, for two potential mayoral candidates: Representative Anthony D. Weiner and City Council Speaker Christine C. Quinn.

Mayoral candidates must raise $250,000 in small-dollar donations of up to $175 to qualify for a $6-to-$1 match of public funds. Mr. Weiner had already raised that $250,000, out of a total of $5 million in contributions, before abandoning his mayoral bid when Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg ran for a third term.

Under the old rules, any money left over from an earlier cycle would not be eligible for public matching funds. But now, under the new ruling, Mr. Weiner just raised another $1.5 million without lifting a finger.

Jeff Patch

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