Annie McDonough

New York

Deputy City Hall Reporter at City & State NY

Reporter @CityAndStateNY • Write me/send tips at amcdonough (at) cityandstateny (dot com) • She/her

Articles

Mark Levine nets building trades’ backing in comptroller bid

1 week ago | cityandstateny.com | Annie McDonough

Which New York City comptroller wannabe is labor’s pick to oversee the city’s pension funds? It’s getting more difficult to say. Justin Brannan, a term-limited City Council member, is backed by heavy-hitters 32BJ SEIU and the Hotel and Gaming Trades Council, along with the Transport Workers Union and Uniformed Sanitationmen’s Association local, as well as the typically left-leaning New York State Nurses Association. Those endorsements give him some of the heftier union support in the race so far.
Brad Lander gets No. 1 ranking in another progressive group’s endorsement

1 week ago | cityandstateny.com | Annie McDonough

Are we catching the beginnings of Lander-mentum? A second progressive group is coalescing behind Comptroller Brad Lander as their first pick for mayor in the Democratic primary. Churches United For Fair Housing’s political arm is endorsing Lander as their No. 1 candidate, and also backing Assembly Member Zohran Mamdani and City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams as unranked endorsements, CUFFH first told City & State.
Andrew Cuomo denied millions in public matching funds for mayoral campaign

1 week ago | cityandstateny.com | Annie McDonough |Sahalie Donaldson

With just two months until the Democratic primary election, the New York City Campaign Finance Board denied former Gov. Andrew Cuomo millions of dollars in public matching funds on Tuesday. The campaign attributed the issue to a software glitch with its donor platform.
Does anyone want to be New York City’s tech mayor?

1 week ago | cityandstateny.com | Annie McDonough

The hard work of tech transformation within government is largely pretty boring. Julie Samuels, Tech:NYC executive directorMany elections, whether local or national, feature a “tech guy.” A candidate running on a platform that promises to leverage technology to get government to operate at the cutting edge – something government is not well known for. In 2021, the Democratic mayoral primary had a couple of these candidates, including New York City’s future mayor.
Deputy Mayor Randy Mastro says Council Speaker Adrienne Adams ‘misused her city position’

1 week ago | cityandstateny.com | Annie McDonough

In a perfectly tidy and ethical world, elected officials who are running for political office would do their campaigning in a remote, vacuum-sealed bubble, far out of reach of the levers of power of their government offices. In reality, it’s a lot messier than that.
A couple of Cuomo endorsers in the City Council lose budget negotiation roles

2 weeks ago | cityandstateny.com | Annie McDonough |Holly Pretsky

Sponsor Message Sponsor Message Sponsor Message Sponsor Message New York City Council Member Selvena Brooks-Powers had a new seat in the chamber at the City Council stated meeting Thursday. Previously, the majority whip sat at the right hand of Speaker Adrienne Adams. Thursday, she had moved one seat over, and her old seat was occupied by Council Member Diana Ayala, who is deputy speaker.
As Trump admin moves to claw back more federal grants, NYC pursuing ‘legal recourse’

2 weeks ago | cityandstateny.com | Annie McDonough

The Trump administration is moving to claw back an additional $107 million in federal grants awarded to New York City to help cover the cost of sheltering and caring for asylum-seekers. Mayor Eric Adams says the city will continue its legal fight to block the money grab. Unlike the feds’ last seizure of migrant funding, the city got some formal warning this time.
Endorsements in the 2025 New York City mayoral race

2 weeks ago | cityandstateny.com | Annie McDonough

Endorsements are a key piece of the puzzle for mayoral candidates – alongside fundraising and communicating their policies and message to voters. They can help broaden a politician’s appeal beyond their base or even deliver on-the-ground votes. Major labor unions and political organizations often have detailed interviews and voting processes to determine their pick. We’re staying on top of the public endorsements by labor unions, political power brokers, advocacy groups and more.
Pro-housing PAC will spend at least $500k on City Council races

2 weeks ago | cityandstateny.com | Annie McDonough

All that fighting for City of Yes might pay off. The pro-housing group Open New York’s political arm is throwing their weight – and a decent chunk of change – behind YIMBY candidates in half a dozen competitive City Council races, as well as another half dozen incumbents in safer seats this year. Open New York, a housing-focused nonprofit that advocates for more development, launched a political arm last year with a super PAC called Abundant New York.
Here’s who’s running for New York City mayor in 2025

2 weeks ago | cityandstateny.com | Sahalie Donaldson |Annie McDonough |Holly Pretsky

Eric Adams Eric Adams / Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office His ideological stance in brief: Conservative, pro-business Democrat who is now running as an independent candidate. Lately more likely to criticize progressives than the Trump administration. Major endorsements: None reported yet. Fundraising: $4.4 million raised so far. He has an estimated $3 million in the bank, as of March 17. He has been denied public matching funds so far. What is he running on?