“Hypocrisy — saying one thing but doing another,” says the ad’s narrator. “ Meet Albany politician George Latimer. | AP Photo/Mike Groll New Mercer-backed super PAC appears to target Latimer

ALBANY — A new independent expenditure committee has raised over $1 million in recent weeks in what appears to be an effort to help Republican Westchester County Executive Rob Astorino in his bid for a third term.

“Win for NY” was registered with the state Board of Elections late last month. Its treasurer was identified as an employee of construction management company AECOM.


It reported receiving $50,000 from investor Thomas McInerney on Oct. 10 and $10,000 from the landlord-backed Rent Stabilization Association two days later. On Oct. 23, it received two donations of $500,000 apiece from Robert Mercer, the billionaire hedge funder who has backed Breitbart News and Donald Trump’s presidential campaign.

The committee has yet to disclose any expenditures in filings submitted to the board or identify which candidates it will be helping.

Notably, however, about half the money Mercer has previously given to state or local campaigns in New York in the past decade has gone to benefit Astorino. This includes $1.55 million to a super PAC that backed the county executive in his 2014 campaign against Gov. Andrew Cuomo, accounting for close to a quarter of the money spent on Astorino’s campaign. That committee’s second-largest donor was the RSA.

Additionally, a website that was registered in late August — winforny.org — shares a name with the committee. That site contains little besides a well-produced YouTube advertisement that targets state Sen. George Latimer, Astorino’s Democratic opponent.

“Hypocrisy — saying one thing but doing another,” says the ad’s narrator. “Meet Albany politician George Latimer. Latimer voted to raise your property taxes 46 percent, but news reports show Latimer didn’t pay his own property taxes — $46,000 on one of his family’s homes. Textbook hypocrisy — Latimer raises your taxes but doesn’t pay his own.”

The accusations refer to recent revelations that taxes on a house inherited by Latimer’s wife in 2012 have remained unpaid. The senator has said that the issue has arisen due to a fight over ownership between his wife and another relative, and that the taxes will be paid as soon as the estate is sorted out.

The issue has since become one of Astorino’s main talking points.

“Whether it’s real or imaginary, what would a squabble have to do with actually having to pay your taxes?” Astorino asked at a recent news conference. “You legally owe those taxes.”

"Rob Astorino and Donald Trump share the same values, the same hateful rhetoric and the same penchant for lying," said Latimer spokesman Jon Greenfield. "Robert Mercer's backing of Astorino shows that they also share the same dark money."

"George Latimer needs to calm down and pay his property taxes — five years' worth," said Astorino spokesman Bill O'Reilly. "His fits of rage are growing tired. "

O'Reilly, who would not be allowed to coordinate with any independent expenditure committees backing Astorino, said he was unaware of Win for NY.

Attempts to reach several of the entities associated with the committee to confirm their involvement in the Westchester race were unsuccessful.

Update: The committee filed a new disclosure report with the Board of Elections on Wednesday morning identifying a $412,241 ad buy in support of Astorino.