With post-indictment fundraising, Adams is no Trump

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Oct 15, 2024 View in browser   By Jeff Coltin Mayor Eric Adams' fundraising push stalled after his indictment, new campaign filings show. | Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office SHOW ME THE MONEY: Mayor Eric Adams, typically a prodigious fundraiser, brought in just one donation of $250 in the two and a half weeks since his federal indictment, POLITICO reports. That came from Mike Koba, a Flushing man who lists his occupation as unemployed — even though Koba posted a photo with the mayor to his LinkedIn, where he’s the owner of Koba Capital, an insurance brokerage. Overall, Adams raised $212,416 in the last three months for his 2025 reelection, which POLITICO first reported — making it his slowest fundraising period since he took office, according to a filing with the New York City Campaign Finance Board today. That weak period was by design, a person familiar with his operation told Playbook. The mayor stopped holding any fundraising events after bringing in enough money to hit his roughly $7 million spending limit for the primary — a threshold he would only hit if he gets public matching funds. The Campaign Finance Board has yet to determine whether it will grant Adams the $4.35 million his campaign says it has qualified for. Federal prosecutors charged Adams with running an illegal straw donor scheme, something board officials said they would consider ahead of the first scheduled pay-out in December. If he doesn’t get that money, he’ll go back to fundraising. But for now, Adams’ operation is effectively on pause. Adams’ lack of post-indictment campaign support stands in contrast to former President Donald Trump, whose team said it raised more than $15 million in the two weeks after Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg indicted him. Trump has aggressively solicited donations based on his legal woes, while the New York City mayor doesn’t even have a campaign website. His team doesn’t send out standard emails or texts requesting money, and lacks an easily accessible online fundraising portal. Instead, the campaign for the embattled mayor hosts fundraising events, such as a Saturday lunch his brother Bernard hosted at a Chinese restaurant in Queens, or a birthday party for the mayor at a Manhattan club. It’s worked — Adams has reported raising $4.14 million for his reelection campaign, and still has $3.11 million on hand. That’s a massive lead over all of his declared challengers. Adams had also been soliciting money for his legal defense fund, and its quarterly report is due later today. Compliance attorney Vito Pitta declined to share that fundraising total ahead of time, but a person familiar with the operation said donations slowed to that account too after Adams was criminally charged and those managing the fund temporarily stopped soliciting. — Jeff Coltin FROM THE CAPITOL Chauncey Parker (left) will take over as the new deputy mayor for public safety. | Caroline Rubinstein-Willis/Mayoral Photography Office NEW PUBLIC SAFETY CHIEF: Adams announced a new deputy mayor for public safety today, about one week after Phil Banks stepped down from the post. Chauncey Parker, who was previously Banks’ assistant deputy mayor and also served as a deputy commissioner in the NYPD, will fill the role. “Chauncey is a lifelong public servant who has spent his career working at the city, state and federal levels building bridges between law enforcement and communities across the state,” Adams said in a statement. Parker will oversee the operations of city emergency and public safety agencies — like the FDNY and the NYPD — in the role. — Jason Beeferman GOODBYE THROUGH AI: Outgoing Schools Chancellor David Banks spent his last day on the job putting on an event on a major policy issue he’s been hyping up. But it received little promotion from the city Department of Education. Banks hosted a “special convening” of an advisory council that was expected to launch this month to get advice from tech companies and academics as the school system integrates artificial intelligence into classrooms. The four-hour conference — held at the headquarters of the city’s powerful teachers union — was closed to the press despite Banks unveiling his vision for AI in schools as part of an annual address. The DOE did not put out a public schedule for Banks for Tuesday, either. He spoke for just five minutes at the beginning of the event, according to three attendees who were granted anonymity to describe the private meeting. He revealed that First Deputy Chancellor Dan Weisberg — among the DOE officials in attendance — will lead the agency’s AI efforts and cited his 40-year career in education. “He spoke briefly about the importance of integrating AI into the learning experience in schools,” one attendee said. Banks — who was initially wary of AI — spoke more at length in a Daily News op-ed Tuesday morning. This comes after federal investigators served the DOE with a subpoena as part of a probe into Banks and his family, after the FBI seized his phones last month. Adams forced Banks’ early resignation amid their monthslong rift. — Madina Touré From The Campaign Trail A DCCC memo spotlights the role of race in Rep. Anthony D’Esposito’s faceoff against Democrat Laura Gillen. | Bonnie Cash/Getty Images DCCC TALKS RACE: A DCCC strategy memo focused on Rep. Anthony D’Esposito’s alleged abuses of power — especially as an NYPD officer — recommends tailoring campaign rhetoric around racism for Black voters. “It is critical that voters DO NOT see on broadcast, cable, satellite, or streaming TV any mentions of racism or discrimination in D’Esposito’s police record,” the House Democrats’ campaign arm advises in bold font in its memo on the Long Island battleground. “Black voters — but NOT a general market audience — may read in the mail and hear on the radio about his record of discrimination as it relates to his police record.” D’Esposito, a Nassau County Republican fighting for his political life against Democrat Laura Gillen, was accused of lying under oath as a cop, costing the city $250,000 in a settlement. He was also docked for not securing his gun and is accused of other recklessness, according to reporting by the Daily News. Every complaint against D’Esposito at the independent review board was filed by a Black resident, the DCCC notes. The rest of the NY-04 memo is more straightforward, advising that, for example, abortion-related messaging be targeted to women and messaging on benefits for seniors be targeted to Latino voters. A DCCC spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment. Almost none of the group’s other recent New York battleground memos, which are public, reference strategizing according to voters’ races. (The DCCC’s guidance for NY-18, where Republican challenger Alison Esposito is also a former cop, reads that Black and Latino voters should see ads about public safety.) — Emily Ngo LAWLER TRAIL$: Hudson Valley Rep. Mike Lawler raised nearly $1.6 million in the past three months for one of the country’s most competitive races. The freshman Republican faces Democrat Mondaire Jones, whose campaign said he raised $2.9 million. Lawler’s numbers were filed earlier today to the FEC. Lawler, whose seat is crucial to determining which party controls the House, had $1.9 million cash on hand, according to his filing. Jones, a former member of Congress, had a $2.3 million warchest, according to the Hill. Though Jones nearly doubled Lawler’s haul in the third quarter, the rivals were neck and neck in the second quarter. Several Republicans running in New York state battleground races in 2022 won their races even when they were outraised by Democrats. — Emily Ngo IN OTHER NEWS... — SHOW US THE MONEY: The Bronx Democratic Party has failed to disclose more than $400,000 in campaign contributions over the past four years — an apparent violation of campaign finance law. (New York Focus) — ASHWIN LEAVIN’: Outgoing New York City Health Commissioner Ashwin Vasan is leaving earlier than expected. (Gothamist) — NY PRISONER IS WANNABE ALASKA POL: An inmate at the Otisville Correctional facility is on the ballot for Alaska’s sole House seat. (The New York Times) Missed this morning’s New York Playbook? We forgive you. Read it here .   Follow us on Twitter Jason Beeferman @JasonBeeferman   Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook  |  Playbook PM  |  California Playbook  |  Florida Playbook  |  Illinois Playbook  |  Massachusetts Playbook  |  New Jersey Playbook  |  New York Playbook  |  Brussels Playbook  |  London Playbook View all our political and policy newsletters Follow us

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