ALBANY – Candidates for New York Governor are taking exception to tax-payer funded flyers that they say unethically promote Cuomo’s re-election efforts.
“Register to vote. It’s easier than ever. Governor Andrew M. Cuomo is expanding access and opportunity to New Yorkers to register to vote,” the flyer, sent to voters, said.
The New York Post broke the story. Republican challenger Marc Molinaro not only called the tax-payer funded flyer “an abuse of taxpayer resources for campaign political purposes,” but wrote a letter of complaint to the Joint Commission on Public Ethic and the state Board of Elections seeking an ethics probe.
Democratic Primary challenger Cynthia Nixon questioned the assertion that Cuomo has made it easier to vote and said this was an abuse of taxpayer money.
Common Cause has publicly called the flyer inappropriate, but the Cuomo camp has defended the practice and said it was reviewed by an attorney prior to being mailed.
A spokesperson for Libertarian candidate Larry Sharpe told WNYNewsNow that the following statement was from his campaign and not Sharpe himself.
“This is speaking on behalf of the campaign rather than Larry himself. To hear of Cuomo using taxpayer funds as he pleases is part of the same old song and dance in New York State politics. With that being said, Marc Molinaro calling him on it is hypocrisy at its most obvious- that is unless Molinaro can say no contractors were awarded county bids after having donated to his previous run for office. Larry Sharpe is the only 2018 NYS gubernatorial candidates not propped up by special interest groups and / or people who will later cash in on political favors.”