Cuomo Has $16 Million in Campaign Cash and No Campaign. What Now? - The New York Times

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The former governor still has a big war chest even as he faces large legal bills.

Former Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo of New York may have resigned in disgrace last year amid accusations of sexual harassment, but he still controls a war chest of more than $16 million, according to records released on Tuesday.

Mr. Cuomo, once one of the strongest fund-raisers in the Democratic Party, left office last summer with $18 million in campaign funds. It was a staggering amount, especially for a departing official — though that sum has been surpassed by his successor, Gov. Kathy Hochul, whose team announced on Tuesday that her campaign raised nearly $21.6 million in five months, with more than $21 million in cash on hand.

The most recent disclosure report showed that Mr. Cuomo’s stockpile had diminished since leaving office, as he made significant expenditures to law firms, reflecting the morass of legal difficulties he has confronted.

But with more than $16.4 million in cash on hand, Mr. Cuomo remains among the best-funded political figures in New York.

Mr. Cuomo is not fund-raising as a candidate, but he has continued to communicate with supporters and to pay a few advisers — and he has also continued to take in some donations, in particular low-dollar donations, some of which came from outside New York. Some associates have said he appears interested in regaining relevance in public life, even as many big-spending onetime allies have cut ties.

High-dollar donations to Mr. Cuomo appeared to peter out by the end of July, shortly ahead of the release of findings in early August from an inquiry by the attorney general’s office into Mr. Cuomo’s conduct.

He reported more than $200,000 in contributions and more than $2 million in expenditures for the latest campaign finance period.

The release comes several weeks after top prosecutors in Nassau, Westchester and Albany Counties declared the sexual harassment allegations against Mr. Cuomo to be disturbing, credible and serious, but concluded that they would not prosecute him for a crime. The prosecutors in Nassau and Westchester said allegations of Mr. Cuomo’s conduct that they examined were not criminal under state law; the Albany County district attorney “concluded that we cannot meet our burden at trial,” though the office found “the complainant in this case cooperative and credible.”

Mr. Cuomo has plainly been emboldened by those developments.

Last week, Mr. Cuomo’s lawyer, Rita Glavin, held a news conference in which she questioned the credibility of some of the women who accused Mr. Cuomo of misconduct, and laced into the state attorney general’s office, which oversaw the investigation that concluded Mr. Cuomo sexually harassed 11 women.

Ms. Glavin declined to speculate on Mr. Cuomo’s political future, but said he was exploring “whatever legal options he has available to him.” Glavin PLLC, Ms. Glavin’s firm, received nearly $900,000, the report showed.

Under state law it is possible that the state could reimburse some legal fees, Politico New York has reported. Rich Azzopardi, a spokesman for Mr. Cuomo, said pursing that avenue was an option, though it is not clear how such a move would be interpreted by the attorney general’s office.

The Downfall of Andrew Cuomo

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The path to resignation. After drawing national praise for his leadership in the early days of the pandemic, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo was confronted with several scandals that eventually led to his resignation on Aug. 10, 2021. Here is what to know about his political demise:

Sexual harassment accusations. Multiple women accused Mr. Cuomo of harassment, including groping and lewd remarks. An independent inquiry by the New York State attorney general corroborated the accounts. The investigation also found that he retaliated against at least one woman who made her complaints public.

Nursing home controversy. The Cuomo administration came under fire for undercounting the number of nursing-home deaths caused by Covid-19 in the first half of 2020. The official tally might have undercounted the true toll by as much as 50 percent.

Book deal. The attorney general’s report found that Mr. Cuomo used state workers to produce his pandemic memoir, breaking a promise to the Joint Commission on Public Ethics not to use state resources for its completion. The board subsequently voted to revoke its authorization for the book.

Chris Cuomo’s involvement. Chris Cuomo, a CNN anchor and Andrew Cuomo’s brother, was suspended indefinitely by the network on Nov. 30, after the New York State attorney general released new evidence about his far-reaching efforts to assist his sibling that were in breach of journalistic standards. He was fired on Dec. 4.

In addition to spending on legal fees, the campaign has spent on political efforts as recently as Tuesday morning, funding an email to supporters that sharply criticized Attorney General Letitia James and promoted Ms. Glavin’s appearance. Ms. James and her team have strongly defended the report.

Campaign finance records also show at least $42,500 in expenditures for Bulldog Strategies, LLC, which was founded by Mr. Azzopardi, and one of Mr. Cuomo’s top advisers in office, Stephanie Benton, also appears to have remained on payroll.

There is also evidence of at least one plane charter: $12,241.03 to Apollo Jets in mid-August. Mr. Azzopardi said it was for previous fund-raiser travel earlier that summer.

From political exile, Mr. Cuomo has remained in touch with associates and onetime allies after leaving office, sounding some of them out over the last several months about the political landscape, even as many Democrats have made clear they hope he stays on the sidelines. One Democrat familiar with some of Mr. Cuomo’s calls said that he appeared to have started increasing his outreach in the New York political arena earlier this month, as a judge dismissed a criminal complaint that had accused him of groping a former aide in the Executive Mansion in late 2020.

Another person who spoke with him in recent weeks said Mr. Cuomo gave the impression that he was seeking vindication, and made clear that he believed those who had called for his resignation had made a mistake.

Mr. Cuomo could use his remaining funds beyond any effort to seek office himself, from making political donations — though accepting money from him would be politically fraught for many Democrats — to attacking perceived adversaries to efforts to improve his image.

Nicholas Fandos contributed reporting.

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Cuomo Has $16 Million in Campaign Cash and No Campaign. What Now? - The New York Times
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