Massey raises twice as much as de Blasio in latest campaign filing

Paul Massey trounced Mayor Bill de Blasio in fundraising over the past two months, raising twice as much as the incumbent, new filings show.

The Republican mayoral candidate and Cushman & Wakefield executive raked in $850,000, according to the city’s Campaign Finance Board, compared with the mayor’s $394,000 haul between Jan. 12 and March 11, the New York Post reported. While Massey has been called a long shot, his newbie status could ultimately give him a boost in polls.

“Almost without exception, New Yorkers tell me that they are ready for a new mayor,” Massey said in a statement. His campaign said the $850,000 haul was a record, exceeding a previous record of $739,000 during the same time period.

In January, campaign filings showed Massey raised $1.6 million over the prior six months, from donors including Bob Knakal, James Nelson and HFF Boston executive director John Fowler. Massey, who was endorsed by the Independence Party of New York, raised about $500,000 more than de Blasio between July 2016 and January 2017, according to the CFB.

For the March filing period, de Blasio’s campaign took in 3,000 donations in the latest filings period. Ninety-five percent of the donations were for $175 or less.

“Our campaign continues to focus on harnessing the grassroots energy behind the mayor’s campaign,” Elana Leopold, finance director for de Blasio’s re-election committee, told the Post.

De Blasio’s past fundraising has been the subject of state and federal inquiries, although no charges have been filed. It’s unclear what impact the firing of Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara will have on the federal probe. [NYP] — E.B. Solomont