Mayor Adams blamed the city’s independent election watchdog agency Monday for stirring up “a lot of sensationalism” by releasing a draft audit that found his 2021 campaign failed to properly document $2.3 million in spending, among other alleged violations.
Marking his first comments on the draft audit that became public last week, Adams argued at an unrelated morning press conference that the Campaign Finance Board “leaked” the document to media outlets.
“I think it’s unfair when someone produces a draft report that we’re supposed to respond to and that draft report is leaked by the agency that is supposed to be doing the right thing,” Adams told reporters at City Hall.
“There was a lot of sensationalism attached to that draft report that was leaked, and I don’t think that follows the proper procedures of how you’re supposed to handle a draft report,” he added.
The Daily News, which was among several outlets that published stories about the findings, obtained the draft in response to a Freedom of Information Law request. Under that law, the CFB’s required to disclose most external findings it produces in response to FOIL requests, including draft audits.
A spokesman for the CFB didn’t immediately return a request for comment.
Adams’ team has until the end of this month to respond to the alleged violations flagged in the draft audit, which analyzes the $20 million the mayor raised for his 2021 campaign, more than half of which was public matching funds. Once it receives responses, CFB’s board will consider what steps to take, which could include levying fines.
Adams said Monday his campaign is in midst of responding to the findings.
The draft audit found Adams’ campaign team didn’t provide required documents, like supporting contracts and bank records, for $2.3 million in various spending.
The unaccounted-for spending included payments to key Adams staffers, like his chief adviser Ingrid Lewis-Martin and Brianna Suggs, his top political fundraiser whose home was raided by FBI agents last year as part of an investigation into whether Turkey’s government pumped illegal straw donations into his 2021 campaign coffers. Adams has not been accused of wrongdoing in that probe.
The draft audit also flagged other alleged violations, including the campaign accepting apparent straw donations and failing to properly document the activities of individuals bundling contributions for Adams’ election bid.
Campaign finance experts have said the CFB findings could result in fines against Adams ranging in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. A CFB auditor also wrote in a letter attached to the findings that the campaign’s likely going to have to return some $500,000 in public matching funds it never spent during the 2021 cycle.
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