Hochul Outpaces Blakeman With $30 Million Funding Advantage
New York Governor Kathy Hochul holds $18.5 million in her campaign account for the final month of the election cycle, while Republican challenger Bruce Blakeman has $178,000 remaining, according to campaign-finance reports filed with the New York State Board of Elections. The two gubernatorial rivals combined to raise and spend more than $20 million since July, primarily on television and online advertisements, Newsday reported.
Fundraising Totals and Spending Since July
Hochul reported raising $12.8 million over the summer, aided by a $10 million transfer from the New York State Democratic Committee. Her total spending reached $14.8 million since July. Television advertisements accounted for her largest expense at $7.1 million, alongside nearly $3.3 million directed toward online ads.
Blakeman raised about $6 million during the same period and spent $10 million. His campaign received $300,000 from the GOP state committee and $1.6 million from the Nassau County GOP Committee. The county committee has contributed more than $3 million total to his gubernatorial run since it began.
An additional $2.3 million of Blakeman’s total came in public matching funds from the state’s program, which opened to gubernatorial candidates for the first time this year. Blakeman remains eligible for a maximum of $3.5 million through the program. Candidates qualify by raising $500,000 from at least 5,000 state residents giving $1,050 or less, with the first $250 matched six to one by taxpayer dollars. Hochul declined to participate in the matching funds program.
Democratic Party Financial Advantage and Super PAC Support
Democratic committees maintain a stark financial advantage over Republican organizations heading into the final month of the race. The state Democratic Committee holds another $15 million in reserve. Combined with her campaign account, Hochul controls $33.5 million, which her campaign stated is the most money any New York candidate has held at this point in the election cycle.
By contrast, the Nassau County Republican Committee held $2.6 million as of October 2, and the state GOP Committee held $244,422. Combined with Blakeman’s individual account, Republican forces have roughly $3.1 million on hand, leaving a roughly $30 million gap behind the Democrats.
Blakeman relies partly on outside help from at least two Super PACs formed to unseat Hochul. One of those groups, Strong and Safe New York, has spent $1.7 million on the race and retains $2.9 million in the bank.
Blakeman Lacks Funds to Counter Hochul in Final Weeks
Lawrence Levy, dean of suburban studies at Hofstra University, noted that Blakeman’s fundraising and spending exceeded initial expectations but left him in a difficult position for the homestretch.
Campaigns, including fundraising, are more of a marathon than a sprint, except in the final weeks. And while Blakeman has managed to exceed expectations and has been running hard to this point, it doesn’t look like he has enough left in the tank to counter Hochul’s financial onslaught.