Some donors far exceeded the putative contribution limit: A dozen sources have kicked in more $150,000 apiece since Cuomo's second term began in 2015. | Getty Images Cuomo's dozen: His top donors and their 6-figure generosity

ALBANY — No New York politician in recent years has been better at getting around the state campaign contribution limit of $65,100 than Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who has received numerous six-figure and even seven-figure donations since he took office in 2011.

Cuomo's fundraising strategy has drawn more criticism lately than it had the past, thanks to frequent attacks from his various challengers. Seemingly as a result, the governor has tried to artificially inflate the number of small donors giving to his campaign.


But the governor’s $31 million war chest remains heavily dependent on his largest contributors. All told, roughly 70 sources have given him more than $65,100 in his second term, thanks in large part to legal loopholes like one that essentially allows owners of limited liability companies to contribute as much as they wish.

Some donors far exceeded the putative contribution limit: A dozen sources have kicked in more $150,000 apiece since Cuomo's second term began in 2015. Together, these donors have accounted for $3.1 million in donations, more than the combined total of $2.5 million that has been raised by opponents Marc Molinaro and Cynthia Nixon.

And that only includes donations made directly to the governor’s campaign committee, and would likely look a little different if it included contributions made to Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul or the New York State Democratic Committee, which has often been indistinguishable from Cuomo’s own campaign efforts.

Earlier this year, the state party received $500,000 from hedge fund manager James Simons, who successfully pushed for a plan to raise tuition at state colleges that Cuomo signed in 2011. Simons has now given the governor and the state committee a combined $2.6 million since he won his first term in 2010, more than any other contributor.

But even putting aside the party money, the amounts given directly to Cuomo are considerable. Here’s a look at his largest donors since 2015 and some of the business they have before the governor’s office.

Brookfield Asset Management ($400,000)

The Canadian real estate and renewable energy company has long been one of the governor’s top donors. It contributed more than $800,000 in his first term.

The firm also is a big beneficiary of Cuomo's clean energy efforts. Three days after the firm gave Cuomo $100,000 last year, he announced that two of its hydroelectric projects were among 11 recipients of a $360 million pool of money from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority.

Scott Rechler ($395,000)

Rechler himself has given the governor only $60,000 since 2015, though his wife has contributed $65,000 and two of his children have donated $25,000 apiece. Four limited liability companies tied to his real estate firm RXR Realty have also given.

Cuomo appointed Rechler to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey in 2011 and the MTA in 2017. He’s also recently served on Cuomo’s “Fix NYC” committee, which was tasked with coming up with a plan to fund repairs to the city’s subways.

The Durst Organization ($300,200)

The real estate firm has been one of the larger beneficiaries of the state's 421-a tax abatement program for developers, and has negotiated it with the governor’s office. The company has specifically said a bill authored by Cuomo’s office to renew the program allowed it to go forward with a major development in Astoria.

The governor has also directly involved himself in a feud between Douglas Durst and Barry Diller, negotiating a compromise last year that would let the latter move forward with a plan for a floating park in the Hudson.

(Diller is also a sizable donor – he has personally given Cuomo just shy of $37,000. He’s the chairman of IAC, which has contributed $35,000, and Expedia, which has donated $5,000).

Altice/Cablevision ($262,600)

Throughout its existence, Cablevision was always one of the biggest donors to top politicians in New York.

That didn’t change under Cuomo, and it gave the governor $60,000 the year before the state approved its sale to French telecom Altice in 2016. Since then, the cable provider and its new parent company have contributed a further $202,600 to the governor’s reelection efforts.

Mayer Hirsch ($250,000)

All of the donations made by LLCs controlled by Hirsch, a Kiryas Joel developer, came over the course of one week in July 2015. Perhaps coincidentally, that week followed one in which Cuomo vetoed a bill that would have restricted development in Kiryas Joel.

Fisher Brothers ($250,000)

On top of the money given to Cuomo, an LLC tied to Fisher Brothers gave Hochul $10,000 in May. The governor has also received $12,500 from partner Martin Edelman.

The developer’s money was at the center of controversy five years ago, when Cuomo authorized a tax carve-out for one of the company's properties weeks after its partners gave him $76,000. Those donations were being actively investigated by the Moreland Commission to Investigate Public Corruption before the governor shut it down.

Lester Petracca ($245,100)

Petracca and his family have given the governor $130,100 this cycle, and holdings of his family firm Triangle Equities have donated $115,000.

Triangle has been behind a plan to build “a charming old-world merchant village” on Staten Island. The Cuomo administration successfully fought for it to receive $16.5 million in state funding in 2016.

The governor has also appointed Petracca to the Nassau County Interim Finance Authority.

SL Green ($236,579)

The odd amount attributed to SL Green is due to the atypical way in which the companiy contributed to the governor — for many years, it has subsidized the rent of Cuomo’s campaign office, which appears as an in-kind donation on his disclosure forms.

In 2017, the MTA announced it would sell the development rights for a property that the firm had coveted as it attempts to build a new tower in Lower Manhattan.

Howard Milstein ($220,000)

Milstein, a bank executive, served as the chairman of the Thruway Authority during Cuomo’s first term.

International Union of Operating Engineers ($207,500)

It took nearly eight years for Cuomo to build his current amicable relationship with most of the state’s labor unions, but he’s always had strong connections to those in the building trades sector. Eight different locals and PACs affiliated with IUOE have given to the governor since 2015, including some whose members have benefited from Cuomo’s plans to rebuild the Tappan Zee Bridge and overhaul Penn Station.

Haugland Group ($162,405)

The civil engineering company was Cuomo’s biggest new donor in the first half of 2018.

It is a major state contractor — the Department of Transportation and Office of General Services have awarded it contracts totaling $259 million since the governor’s first term began. Most recently, it was given $7 million in February to make improvements on a highway in Staten Island.

On top of this, it also appears to perform work for the MTA, which is largely controlled by Cuomo.

Barry Rosenstein ($151,956)

A sizable share of the donations that hedge fund manager Rosenstein and his family have made to Cuomo came when he hosted an East Hampton fundraiser for the governor last summer, for which he loaned the governor the use of a helicopter.

He has loaned the governor his aircraft on at least one other occasion. Six months ago, his private plane flew Cuomo and partner Sandra Lee to the Sundance Film Festival in Utah.

Note: Given the large number of vaguely titled LLCs that have given to Cuomo, it's possible that a a few contributions made by the donors above were missed. It's also possible that somebody not appearing on this list donated through obscure holdings and was omitted.