Fundraising Totals For District 2 Council Race: Weiner Lags, Batchu Soars, Epstein Close 2nd

The City Council District 2 race, which will determine who represents a wide swath of Lower Manhattan and part of Midtown East, is heating up now that the candidates and supporters are on the streets gathering petitions. A look at candidate contributions and matching funds totals is one measure of exactly who is generating the most heat, and by how much.

One strong takeaway is that Anthony Weiner, the disgraced former congressman that has filed papers to run for the seat, is seriously lagging in donation totals; he’s pulled in a mere $27,000 in contributions since formalizing his plans last December. As of Feb. 18, he was ineligible for matching funds. He does not appear to have much in the way of a platform yet.

The now 60 year-old Weiner ended a 21-month jail sentence in 2019, after pleading guilty to sending sexually explicit text messages to a 15 year-old girl in 2016. He surrendered to the FBI in 2017. Weiner had resigned from Congress in 2011 after engaging in similar behavior with multiple other women, who weren’t minors.

Between his resignation from Congress and his 2017 arrest, he engaged in the same behavior with other women in two additional incidents: sending explicit photos to a 22 year-old during a 2013 run for mayor of NYC, and sending more such photos in 2016, which led to a divorce with his now-ex-wife Huma Abedin–who was then the vice-chair of Hillary Clinton’s run for president. Huma’s sister Heba Abedin appears to have chipped in money to his current City Council bid, according to the city’s Campaign Finance Board.

Harvey Epstein, who represents a large Lower East Side district in the State Assembly, currently has $65,529.33 in contributions. He also has $192,534 in matching funds. So far, he’s released plans on boosting mental health treatment and affordable housing. If elected, he’ll obviously not fill out the second year of his Assembly seat.

Andrea Gordillo, the chair of Community Board 3 and a social justice activist, narrowly lags Epstein at $61,887.97 in contributions and $192,534 in matching funds. She’s running on climate resiliency and affordable housing planks, as well as the support of independent culture spaces.

Sarah Batchu still appears to be the top fundraiser with a sum total of $80,918.00, giving her an interesting contributions lead on established politicians such as Epstein. She appears to have received $192,534 in total matching fund payments. The 31-year-old, who is seeking elected office for the first time, has attracted a host of young volunteers.

In addition to broader planks of her platform such as protecting LBTQIA+ rights and funding public housing, Batchu is centering her opposition to the on-again off-again closure of Mt. Sinai’s Beth Israel Hospital on E. 16th St., and is demanding that a replacement hospital be built in the district if it is allowed to shutter in the coming weeks.

As of Feb. 28, the closure is once again wrapped up in the appeals process. Harvey Epstein has also rallied in favor of preserving the hospital.

On March 1, Batchu opened her campaign headquarters on Avenue B, subleasing the dine-in portion of family-owned ElevenB Italian Restaurant between now and July 1. This occurs while Vinny Sgarlato, the owner of the popular East Village mainstay for two decades, is trying to negotiate a new lease with his landlord. He’s added that he is going to keep ElevenB Express delivery service, which operates out of a side door, running.

Allie Ryan, another community activist, has acquired $6,939.50 in contributions and no money in matching funds. She made a sizable showing when she attempted to unseat Rivera in a primary two years ago. She partially centered that campaign around lobbying against the East River Resiliency project, which Rivera supported.

The incumbent District 2 representative, the term-limited Carlina Rivera, has not revealed her future plans when her term ends on December 31.