Dem’s the Blakes.
New York GOP gubernatorial hopeful Bruce Blakeman was effectively denied millions in matching campaign funds Tuesday by Democrats on a powerful state board over a paperwork technicality.
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The party-line, 4-3 vote by the Public Campaign Finance Board disqualified Blakeman from the state’s campaign finance program and handed Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul – who already has a $20 million lead on her challenger’s war chest – an added advantage in November’s election.
Bruce Blakeman’s campaign has already signaled they’ll sue the state. Brian Zak/NY Post
Blakeman, the executive for Nassau County, could lose out on a combined $4.38 million in matching funds if the decision from the Dem-controlled board stands.
“A board stacked with Democrats, appointed by the same Albany machine that’s terrified of our campaign, is trying to kneecap my campaign before we even reach the summer,” Blakeman said in a fundraising email sent soon after the decision.
“They’re saying, ‘Hey, we can’t beat Bruce Blakeman. So, let’s cheat him.’”
The decision — which was blasted as partisan and petty by critics — had been expected even before the board’s meeting, with Blakeman signaling Monday that he’d sue the state if it came to pass.
During the meeting, Democrats on the board dinged Blakeman as predicted because his running mate, Madison County Sheriff Todd Hood, never submitted his own paperwork applying for matching funds – a newly created filing requirement.
Testy board Republicans, in a discussion before the vote, argued the Dems were playing penny-ante games with the rules.
Kathy Hochul already had a $20M lead on Blakeman. Susan Watts/Office of Governor Kathy Hochul
“Playing gotcha politics with this is frankly disgraceful,” said Republican Public Campaign Finance Board Commissioner Brian Kolb, a former Assembly minority leader.
The board’s decision was derided ahead of time by the good government group Reinvent Albany and even the lefty civic group Citizens Union, which said it risked undermining the public’s trust.
Citizens Union Executive Director Grace Rauh, after the vote, ripped board members for failing to clearly communicate the new rules.
“The best course of action would have been to acknowledge these shortcomings and provide the campaign an opportunity to fix the underlying issue,” she said in a statement.
The decision had been expected even before the board’s meeting, with Blakeman signaling Monday that he’d sue the state if it came to pass. Paul Martinka for NY Post
“Instead, the Board chose a party-line vote that only devolves this matter into a partisan political battle and potential legal fight, undermining the public campaign finance program.”
Kolb, during the meeting, asked questions of GOP staffers on the state Board of Elections — revealing they still hadn’t even developed the form that Dems on the campaign finance panel argued Blakeman should’ve filed.
He also asked fellow Commissioner Barbara Lifton, a Democrat, to abstain from the vote since she was appointed by Hochul.
Nassau County Executive and current NY State Governor candidate Bruce Blakeman held a press conference in front of NYC City Hall in Manhattan, NY on March 30, 2026. James Messerschmidt for the NY Post
“No one has ever questioned my honesty or my integrity,” Lifton, a former Ithaca assemblymember, said, refusing his request.
Other commissioners argued that injecting clear partisanship into the process was simply unwarranted, given the understandable confusion as that this was the first time both lieutenant governor and governor candidates were running as a ticket.
“Obviously, we’re dealing in uncharted waters here,” said Commissioner Anthony Casale, a GOP appointee.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul attends a press conference on the release of NYC High School student Dylan Lopez Contreras at Middle Church on March 19, 2026 in New York City. Getty Images
“The only purpose of getting the candidate for lieutenant governor to sign the form is, I’m sure, to make sure he’s covered under any enforcement actions, which is understandable. But it’s a bureaucratic snafu. This wasn’t anything intentional, nothing criminal. It was strictly a bureaucratic snafu, and we have to have the guts to correct it.”
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Blakeman campaign spokeswoman Madison Spanodemos pointed at a new polling showing the candidate is closing a gap with Hochul. She also lambasted Lifton – Hochul’s sole appointee on the board.
“With the race tightening and her poll numbers sagging, it’s no surprise Kathy Hochul’s handpicked appointee would vote to take away funds from Bruce Blakeman’s campaign,” Spanodemos said in a statement.
“While it reeks of corruption, no money in the world can hide Kathy Hochul’s record of driving up taxes, rent, utility bills, and insurance premiums.”
— Additional reporting by Carl Campanile