CFB Warns: Adams May Have to Return $10M in Matching Funds
Citing his federal indictment, the Campaign Finance Board told the mayor that he may be decertified from the public money program. This story was originally published by THE CITY on Dec. 20. Sign up to get the latest New York City news from The CITY delivered to you each morning.
New York City’s Campaign Finance Board has warned Mayor Eric Adams he may be found to have breached the rules for receiving public matching funds.
If the board sticks to its findings, Adams would have to return the $10 million in taxpayer funds he got during his 2021 campaign. Adams now has a chance to petition the CFB before it makes a final determination.
In a letter sent Dec. 18 to Adams’ 2025 campaign, the board cited allegations of campaign finance fraud outlined in the federal indictment of Adams, including whether Adams knowingly submitted fraudulent claims for matching funds in his first run for mayor.
Danielle Willemin, the CFB’s director of auditing and accounting, wrote that issues raised in the indictment “may cause the board to consider whether the campaign has submitted a disclosure statement which the participant knew or should have known includes substantial fraudulent matchable contribution claims, which is one of the activities that can lead to a finding of breach of certification.”
The indictment charges that tens of thousands of dollars in illegal donations made to the mayor’s 2021 campaign triggered matching funds, including some from foreign sources tied to the Turkish government funneled through illegal “straw donors.”
A review of Adams’ 2025 disclosures by THE CITY found that CFB auditors had tagged as invalid nearly one third ($139,000) of the $504,000 in contributions that Adams’ campaign claimed were eligible for the $8 to $1 match.
Greg Smith is s senior investigative reporter at TheCity. contact him at: gsmith@thecity.nyc.