Latest news with #TuskStrategies
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Watchdog group calls for probe of Andrew Cuomo's campaign
NEW YORK — A government reform group is urging campaign finance regulators to investigate Andrew Cuomo's relationship with a lobbying firm providing him free campaign services and to consider stripping the mayoral frontrunner of millions of dollars in public matching funds. Common Cause New York filed a complaint Tuesday with the city Campaign Finance Board, alleging consulting services provided by Tusk Strategies — a prominent New York City-based lobbying company — amount to thousands of dollars of in-kind contributions well above the city's stringent limits. The letter also notes Tusk paid for two mayoral race polls, which were released ahead of Cuomo's campaign launch and showed him leading the pack — helping to solidify the perception of inevitability that he relied on to secure early donations and endorsements. 'There is no indication that the spending for these polls, which appear to have been conducted in direct coordination with Cuomo's campaign, have been adequately reported to the Campaign Finance Board or counted against Cuomo's primary spending cap,' reads the letter. The complaint follows reporting by POLITICO that Tusk Strategies CEO Chris Coffey has worked as an unpaid advisor to Cuomo and handles outreach to the city's politically influential Orthodox Jewish leaders. His business partner, Shontell Smith, is Cuomo's political director and is being paid directly by the campaign. She has been working in 'a personal capacity,' according to a campaign spokesperson, and the letter notes she continues to be paid by Tusk. Common Cause alleged Smith's work for the campaign is 'effectively subsidizing' her pay and 'may undermine the intent of the CFB's strict spending limits.' 'As reported in POLITICO, Tusk Strategies and its principals have been actively involved in promoting and supporting Andrew Cuomo's mayoral campaign in ways that suggest coordination and in-kind donations that have not been properly disclosed,' Common Cause Executive Director Susan Lerner wrote in the letter. Lerner is demanding the regulatory board conduct a 'prompt and thorough examination.' 'We believe that such an investigation will lead the Board to the same conclusion that we have arrived at: the seriousness and the persistence of the violations by the Cuomo campaign demand that the campaign be required to refund all matching funds and be disqualified from receiving any further public funds,' Lerner concluded. Cuomo, who will take the debate stage Wednesday night as the overwhelming favorite ahead of the June 24 Democratic primary, has received $3.2 million in public matching funds. He's being assisted by a well-funded super PAC that is barred from coordinating with his campaign. Fundraising and spending for Cuomo's comeback bid have come under scrutiny since his late entrance into the Democratic primary. Campaign finance regulators have accused Cuomo and the super PAC, Fix the City, of improperly coordinating and last week fined him $675,000. The board in April withheld more than $600,000 in public matching funds on similar grounds. Regulators suspect Cuomo used a 'red boxing' strategy of passing information to Fix the City on his campaign website for preferred messaging and strategy. Cuomo's campaign and the super PAC have insisted they are adhering to campaign finance laws. In response to Lerner's charges, Coffey said his firm routinely conducts and releases polls. 'In all instances, the polls we have commissioned over the years are not done in coordination with, requested by, or shared with any campaigns. We've done at least four in the last 12 months on a range of political and public policy topics,' he said. He also said his work for Cuomo — both the Orthodox Jewish outreach and media advice — follow his career-long pattern of volunteering for political campaigns, which he said is 'in accordance with CFB rules.' 'As this election cycle progressed I began volunteering with the Cuomo campaign as well, just as I did with Chris Quinn's 2013 mayoral campaign,' Coffey said. 'I do not generally provide paid services to individual political candidates, and haven't in four years.' (Coffey ran Andrew Yang's 2021 mayoral campaign.) In his statement, he acknowledged Smith continues to work for Tusk's clients while being paid to consult for Cuomo's campaign. 'To suggest otherwise is demeaning, absurd and runs contrary to the experience of our clients. Ask anyone In the capital in the last four weeks,' Coffey said. In her letter, Lerner asked about the particulars of Smith's arrangement with the Cuomo campaign, whether Tusk disclosed or registered any campaign-related expenditures like the two polls and whether Cuomo has reported any coordination with Tusk or its partners. The head of Honan Strategy Group, which conducted the two polls in question, has penned op-eds touting Cuomo's strength with voters. Cuomo campaign spokesperson Rich Azzopardi knocked Lerner and the group's spokesperson Alexis Grenell as 'longtime Cuomo antagonists (who) know they can't beat Andrew Cuomo at the ballot box' and referred to this letter as 'cynical attempts at election interference.' He also cited other campaigns' work with lobbyists, though Coffey's arrangement is unique given that he is not being paid. 'Individuals are permitted to volunteer on campaigns without it being considered a contribution,' Azzopardi said. 'And for months, many entities — including an anti-Cuomo PAC with no discernable sources of funding, AARP, anoutside group looking to support anyone but Cuomo, and apparently the Working Families Party — all did polls and publicly released them.' POLITICO obtained slides from the Working Families Party's poll over the weekend. The third party, which is running an anti-Cuomo slate, then followed up with further information about its survey. 'We understand early voting is in 11 days and our opponents will try any tactic possible to slow our momentum, but it won't work: New Yorkers know Andrew Cuomo is the only candidate in this race with the experience, record of accomplishment and vision to get the city back on track,' Azzopardi said. Tusk Strategies is also running a 501(c)(4) called 'Restore Sanity NYC' whose literature mirrors Cuomo's campaign messaging — including a photo of the renovated LaGuardia Airport, a project he oversaw as governor. The group's structure allows for its donors to be shielded from public view for the duration of the race while raising and spending unlimited amounts of money. A Tusk Strategies spokesperson said Coffey was walled off from being involved with Restore Sanity NYC's effort. An April 16 document reviewed by POLITICO memorialized the arrangement preventing Coffey and Smith from coordinating with the group while they are working on Cuomo's campaign.
Politico
03-06-2025
- Business
- Politico
Watchdog group calls for probe of Andrew Cuomo's campaign
NEW YORK — A government reform group is urging campaign finance regulators to investigate Andrew Cuomo's relationship with a lobbying firm providing him free campaign services and to consider stripping the mayoral frontrunner of millions of dollars in public matching funds. Common Cause New York filed a complaint Tuesday with the city Campaign Finance Board, alleging consulting services provided by Tusk Strategies — a prominent New York City-based lobbying company — amount to thousands of dollars of in-kind contributions well above the city's stringent limits. The letter also notes Tusk paid for two mayoral race polls, which were released ahead of Cuomo's campaign launch and showed him leading the pack — helping to solidify the perception of inevitability that he relied on to secure early donations and endorsements. 'There is no indication that the spending for these polls, which appear to have been conducted in direct coordination with Cuomo's campaign, have been adequately reported to the Campaign Finance Board or counted against Cuomo's primary spending cap,' reads the letter. The complaint follows reporting by POLITICO that Tusk Strategies CEO Chris Coffey has worked as an unpaid advisor to Cuomo and handles outreach to the city's politically influential Orthodox Jewish leaders. His business partner, Shontell Smith, is Cuomo's political director and is being paid directly by the campaign. She has been working in 'a personal capacity,' according to a campaign spokesperson, and the letter notes she continues to be paid by Tusk. Common Cause alleged Smith's work for the campaign is 'effectively subsidizing' her pay and 'may undermine the intent of the CFB's strict spending limits.' 'As reported in POLITICO, Tusk Strategies and its principals have been actively involved in promoting and supporting Andrew Cuomo's mayoral campaign in ways that suggest coordination and in-kind donations that have not been properly disclosed,' Common Cause Executive Director Susan Lerner wrote in the letter. Lerner is demanding the regulatory board conduct a 'prompt and thorough examination.' 'We believe that such an investigation will lead the Board to the same conclusion that we have arrived at: the seriousness and the persistence of the violations by the Cuomo campaign demand that the campaign be required to refund all matching funds and be disqualified from receiving any further public funds,' Lerner concluded. Cuomo, who will take the debate stage Wednesday night as the overwhelming favorite ahead of the June 24 Democratic primary, has received $3.2 million in public matching funds. He's being assisted by a well-funded super PAC that is barred from coordinating with his campaign. Fundraising and spending for Cuomo's comeback bid have come under scrutiny since his late entrance into the Democratic primary. Campaign finance regulators have accused Cuomo and the super PAC, Fix the City, of improperly coordinating and last week fined him $675,000. The board in April withheld more than $600,000 in public matching funds on similar grounds. Regulators suspect Cuomo used a 'red boxing' strategy of passing information to Fix the City on his campaign website for preferred messaging and strategy. Cuomo's campaign and the super PAC have insisted they are adhering to campaign finance laws. In response to Lerner's charges, Coffey said his firm routinely conducts and releases polls. 'In all instances, the polls we have commissioned over the years are not done in coordination with, requested by, or shared with any campaigns. We've done at least four in the last 12 months on a range of political and public policy topics,' he said. He also said his work for Cuomo — both the Orthodox Jewish outreach and media advice — follow his career-long pattern of volunteering for political campaigns, which he said is 'in accordance with CFB rules.' 'As this election cycle progressed I began volunteering with the Cuomo campaign as well, just as I did with Chris Quinn's 2013 mayoral campaign,' Coffey said. 'I do not generally provide paid services to individual political candidates, and haven't in four years.' (Coffey ran Andrew Yang's 2021 mayoral campaign.) In his statement, he acknowledged Smith continues to work for Tusk's clients while being paid to consult for Cuomo's campaign. 'To suggest otherwise is demeaning, absurd and runs contrary to the experience of our clients. Ask anyone In the capital in the last four weeks,' Coffey said. In her letter, Lerner asked about the particulars of Smith's arrangement with the Cuomo campaign, whether Tusk disclosed or registered any campaign-related expenditures like the two polls and whether Cuomo has reported any coordination with Tusk or its partners. The head of Honan Strategy Group, which conducted the two polls in question, has penned op-eds touting Cuomo's strength with voters. Cuomo campaign spokesperson Rich Azzopardi knocked Lerner and the group's spokesperson Alexis Grenell as 'longtime Cuomo antagonists (who) know they can't beat Andrew Cuomo at the ballot box' and referred to this letter as 'cynical attempts at election interference.' He also cited other campaigns' work with lobbyists, though Coffey's arrangement is unique given that he is not being paid. 'Individuals are permitted to volunteer on campaigns without it being considered a contribution,' Azzopardi said. 'And for months, many entities — including an anti-Cuomo PAC with no discernable sources of funding, AARP, an outside group looking to support anyone but Cuomo, and apparently the Working Families Party — all did polls and publicly released them.' POLITICO obtained slides from the Working Families Party's poll over the weekend. The third party, which is running an anti-Cuomo slate, then followed up with further information about its survey. 'We understand early voting is in 11 days and our opponents will try any tactic possible to slow our momentum, but it won't work: New Yorkers know Andrew Cuomo is the only candidate in this race with the experience, record of accomplishment and vision to get the city back on track,' Azzopardi said. Tusk Strategies is also running a 501(c)(4) called 'Restore Sanity NYC' whose literature mirrors Cuomo's campaign messaging — including a photo of the renovated LaGuardia Airport, a project he oversaw as governor. The group's structure allows for its donors to be shielded from public view for the duration of the race while raising and spending unlimited amounts of money. A Tusk Strategies spokesperson said Coffey was walled off from being involved with Restore Sanity NYC's effort. An April 16 document reviewed by POLITICO memorialized the arrangement preventing Coffey and Smith from coordinating with the group while they are working on Cuomo's campaign.
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Lobbying firms power frontrunner Andrew Cuomo's mayoral campaign
NEW YORK — Andrew Cuomo's mayoral campaign is intertwined with a New York City-based lobbying firm that is providing services for free and stands to have a top ally in City Hall if he wins. Cuomo's arrangement with Tusk Strategies is saving the Democratic frontrunner tens of thousands of dollars on consulting fees, based on a review of rates his rivals pay for similar services. That allows him to spend more money on direct outreach to voters in the form of TV ads, mailers and digital spots. The Democrat's campaign is employing at least four people from another major lobbying firm, Mercury Public Affairs, in Cuomo's bid to oust Mayor Eric Adams. Campaign spokesperson Rich Azzopardi said Mercury is being paid as a general consultancy. He then cited lobbyists working for opponents Zellnor Myrie, Adrienne Adams, Brad Lander and Eric Adams. Tusk presents a different case. The prominent firm, which ran Andrew Yang's 2021 mayoral campaign, has been playing an integral role in Cuomo's bid since before he entered the race in March, ahead of the June 24 primary. CEO Chris Coffey is involved in the campaign, providing communications advice to the former New York governor and handling outreach to the city's politically influential Orthodox Jewish leaders, as first reported by POLITICO. His business partner, Shontell Smith, works as the political director of Cuomo's campaign. Tusk Strategies paid for two public polls — one in February, released days before Cuomo entered the race, and a second less than month after the March campaign launch — which found the former governor handily leading the primary field. Both surveys were conducted by the Honan Strategy Group and helped solidify a perception of inevitability around Cuomo that helped with endorsements and fundraising. Coffey described his role as an 'informal advisor in a volunteer capacity.' Azzopardi said Smith is paid directly by the campaign 'in a personal capacity.' Coffey said the campaign does not take up much of his time, though three people familiar with his role in Cuomo's circle — who were granted anonymity to freely discuss its inner workings — recently described it as more involved than he did. Coffey's firm is also running a 501(c)(4) called 'Restore Sanity NYC,' whose literature matches Cuomo's campaign messaging — down to a photo of the remodeled LaGuardia Airport Terminal he oversaw as governor. The organization, first reported by The CITY and the New York Times, does not mention a candidate on its mailers. Its structure as a nonprofit allows it to raise and spend unlimited sums while shielding the identity of its donors during the race. Campaigns are legally barred from coordinating with super PACs, like the one that has raised some $9 million to boost Cuomo's mayoral bid. The city's Campaign Finance Board has withheld $622,056 in public matching funds as it investigates whether Cuomo's campaign coordinated with the PAC, Fix the City. Azzopardi has said he expects to receive the full amount of eligible matching funds once the regulators complete their probe. Groups like Restore Sanity NYC — which purport not to help any particular candidate — are not beholden to a prohibition on coordination. Nevertheless, Coffey and one of his employees — Alex Sommer — separately said the CEO is walled off from any involvement in the organization, following what the Times — and a person familiar with the matter — described as his outreach to potential donors in March. POLITICO reviewed an April 16 document memorializing that firewall. Tusk Strategies, of course, stands to gain financially from a share of the revenue raised by the group. 'I'm the CEO of a firm with 35 plus people and 40 plus clients with three offices around the country. I also chair two NYC nonprofits (Brooklyn Bridge Park Conservancy and WIN),' Coffey said in a statement. 'That, along with spending time with my two kids and my husband, take up the vast majority of my time and focus.' 'That being said,' he added, 'I love this city and care deeply about its future, which is why I've worked on or volunteered (Quinn, Cuomo) for every mayoral campaign for [the] last 25 years and am beyond proud to do the same for Andrew Cuomo.' Tusk was founded by its namesake, political consultant Bradley Tusk, who ran Mike Bloomberg's 2009 mayoral campaign. It primarily advises corporate clients and lobbies state agencies. Coffey also routinely consults New York politicians, and his firm ran most of Yang's campaign in house four years ago. Cuomo's campaign filing will be public in the coming days; it's not yet known how much his team is paying Mercury. Longtime Cuomo confidant Charlie King, one of the campaign's earliest hires, is a Mercury partner. King worked with Cuomo in the Clinton administration and was his preferred running mate during a disastrous 2002 run for governor, and the two men have remained close. POLITICO in January reported that King was vetting potential campaign staff. As Cuomo prepared to enter the race, Mercury announced the hiring of Jennifer Bayer Michaels, a former Cuomo fundraiser who does not lobby. She now serves as the Cuomo campaign's finance director. Ten days after Cuomo's March 1 entrance into the race, The New York Post reported his campaign hired Edu Hermelyn, a Mercury senior vice president, to be a 'political advisor.' Hermelyn is the husband of Democratic Party leader Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn, who endorsed Cuomo shortly after he entered the race. Jake Dilemani, a Mercury partner, was also involved in hiring staff, and is not listed as a lobbyist. 'It is not uncommon that public affairs professionals work for firms that also provide lobbying services,' Azzopardi said, citing four rivals' on-staff lobbyists — all of whom are being paid, per public filings and statements from those campaigns. 'While we are busy reaching voters and running a campaign, I'm sure POLITICO, with all of its sprawling resources, will do a careful review of all of the other candidates and their consultants who also lobby or work for firms that provide lobbying services.'
Politico
23-05-2025
- Business
- Politico
Lobbying firms power frontrunner Andrew Cuomo's mayoral campaign
NEW YORK — Andrew Cuomo's mayoral campaign is intertwined with a New York City-based lobbying firm that is providing services for free and stands to have a top ally in City Hall if he wins. Cuomo's arrangement with Tusk Strategies is saving the Democratic frontrunner tens of thousands of dollars on consulting fees, based on a review of rates his rivals pay for similar services. That allows him to spend more money on direct outreach to voters in the form of TV ads, mailers and digital spots. The Democrat's campaign is employing at least four people from another major lobbying firm, Mercury Public Affairs, in Cuomo's bid to oust Mayor Eric Adams. Campaign spokesperson Rich Azzopardi said Mercury is being paid as a general consultancy. He then cited lobbyists working for opponents Zellnor Myrie, Adrienne Adams, Brad Lander and Eric Adams. Tusk presents a different case. The prominent firm, which ran Andrew Yang's 2021 mayoral campaign, has been playing an integral role in Cuomo's bid since before he entered the race in March, ahead of the June 24 primary. CEO Chris Coffey is involved in the campaign, providing communications advice to the former New York governor and handling outreach to the city's politically influential Orthodox Jewish leaders, as first reported by POLITICO. His business partner, Shontell Smith, works as the political director of Cuomo's campaign. Tusk Strategies paid for two public polls — one in February, released days before Cuomo entered the race, and a second less than month after the March campaign launch — which found the former governor handily leading the primary field. Both surveys were conducted by the Honan Strategy Group and helped solidify a perception of inevitability around Cuomo that helped with endorsements and fundraising. Coffey described his role as an 'informal advisor in a volunteer capacity.' Azzopardi said Smith is paid directly by the campaign 'in a personal capacity.' Coffey said the campaign does not take up much of his time, though three people familiar with his role in Cuomo's circle — who were granted anonymity to freely discuss its inner workings — recently described it as more involved than he did. Coffey's firm is also running a 501(c)(4) called 'Restore Sanity NYC,' whose literature matches Cuomo's campaign messaging — down to a photo of the remodeled LaGuardia Airport Terminal he oversaw as governor. The organization, first reported by The CITY and the New York Times, does not mention a candidate on its mailers. Its structure as a nonprofit allows it to raise and spend unlimited sums while shielding the identity of its donors during the race. Campaigns are legally barred from coordinating with super PACs, like the one that has raised some $9 million to boost Cuomo's mayoral bid. The city's Campaign Finance Board has withheld $622,056 in public matching funds as it investigates whether Cuomo's campaign coordinated with the PAC, Fix the City. Azzopardi has said he expects to receive the full amount of eligible matching funds once the regulators complete their probe. Groups like Restore Sanity NYC — which purport not to help any particular candidate — are not beholden to a prohibition on coordination. Nevertheless, Coffey and one of his employees — Alex Sommer — separately said the CEO is walled off from any involvement in the organization, following what the Times — and a person familiar with the matter — described as his outreach to potential donors in March. POLITICO reviewed an April 16 document memorializing that firewall. Tusk Strategies, of course, stands to gain financially from a share of the revenue raised by the group. 'I'm the CEO of a firm with 35 plus people and 40 plus clients with three offices around the country. I also chair two NYC nonprofits (Brooklyn Bridge Park Conservancy and WIN),' Coffey said in a statement. 'That, along with spending time with my two kids and my husband, take up the vast majority of my time and focus.' 'That being said,' he added, 'I love this city and care deeply about its future, which is why I've worked on or volunteered (Quinn, Cuomo) for every mayoral campaign for [the] last 25 years and am beyond proud to do the same for Andrew Cuomo.' Tusk was founded by its namesake, political consultant Bradley Tusk, who ran Mike Bloomberg's 2009 mayoral campaign. It primarily advises corporate clients and lobbies state agencies. Coffey also routinely consults New York politicians, and his firm ran most of Yang's campaign in house four years ago. Cuomo's campaign filing will be public in the coming days; it's not yet known how much his team is paying Mercury. Longtime Cuomo confidant Charlie King, one of the campaign's earliest hires, is a Mercury partner. King worked with Cuomo in the Clinton administration and was his preferred running mate during a disastrous 2002 run for governor, and the two men have remained close. POLITICO in January reported that King was vetting potential campaign staff. As Cuomo prepared to enter the race, Mercury announced the hiring of Jennifer Bayer Michaels, a former Cuomo fundraiser who does not lobby. She now serves as the Cuomo campaign's finance director. Ten days after Cuomo's March 1 entrance into the race, The New York Post reported his campaign hired Edu Hermelyn, a Mercury senior vice president, to be a 'political advisor.' Hermelyn is the husband of Democratic Party leader Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn, who endorsed Cuomo shortly after he entered the race. Jake Dilemani, a Mercury partner, was also involved in hiring staff, and is not listed as a lobbyist. 'It is not uncommon that public affairs professionals work for firms that also provide lobbying services,' Azzopardi said, citing four rivals' on-staff lobbyists — all of whom are being paid, per public filings and statements from those campaigns. 'While we are busy reaching voters and running a campaign, I'm sure POLITICO, with all of its sprawling resources, will do a careful review of all of the other candidates and their consultants who also lobby or work for firms that provide lobbying services.'
Forbes
04-04-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Dem Strategist Throws Cold Water On Her Party Celebrating Florida Special Elections: 'Still A Loss'
The GOP candidates in two special congressional elections in Florida won on Tuesday, but with much slimmer margins than the incumbent Republicans won by in November. Shontell Smith, partner at Tusk Strategies, joined "Forbes Newsroom" to discuss the election results. Watch the full interview above.
