A campaign treasurer for a candidate in the race for Brooklyn Borough President has pled guilty to charges of wire fraud, with intentions to defraud the New York City's Campaign Finance Board (CFB). Erlene King, the treasurer in question, admitted to her role in a scheme attempting to secure $400,000 in matching funds by utilizing fraudulent means, including straw donors and forged documents. The case, presided over by United States District Judge Carol Bagley Amon, could result in King facing up to 20 years behind bars.
According to a statement from the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, Breon Peace, this maneuver by King was an affront to the election system put in place by New York City for free and fair elections. Peace accused King of attempting to give her candidate an unfair edge by exploiting the city's matching funds program. The FBI echoed similar sentiments, with Assistant Director in Charge James E. Dennehy condemning King's actions. "Erlene King deprived New York City residents of a fair election by attempting to manipulate hundreds of thousands of dollars in donor contributions to unlawfully favor her candidate," Dennehy stated.
The CFB's matching funds program plays a crucial role in NYC's municipal elections, enabling eligible candidates to receive public funds correlating to specific small-dollar donations. This initiative was set up with the intention to strengthen the connection between New Yorkers and candidates representing them, potentially increasing voter engagement. For the 2021 election cycle, candidates could receive up to $1,457,777 in total public funds for the Office of the Brooklyn Borough President, but only if they raised at least $50,000 in eligible contributions, which would automatically draw at least $400,000 from the CFB.
King's tactics, as outlined by the prosecution, involved directing intermediaries to use applications like CashApp to distribute funds to straw donors, who would then make contributions in their names – unbeknownst to the actual financiers, or using identities of individuals who had not contributed themselves. Despite King's efforts to obtain the matching funds through illicit means, the CFB ultimately recognized the deceit and withheld the funds from the campaign. The trial is being managed by the Public Integrity Section of the United States Attorney's Office, with Assistant United States Attorneys Philip Pilmar and Eric Silverberg at the helm. Their team, bolstered by Paralegal Specialist Rachel Friedman, aims to preserve the integrity of the city's election processes against corruption.
