New York's Lieutenant Governor Resigns After Indictment on Campaign Bribery Charges

Lt. Gov. Brian Benjamin, a Democrat, resigned from office on Tuesday after federal prosecutors alleged that he'd promised public funds to a nonprofit organization in New York City in exchange for a series of unlawful campaign contributions during a previous election.

Gov. Kathy Hochul said in a statement late Tuesday that she'd accepted Benjamin's resignation from office, effective immediately. She'll have to pick a new lieutenant governor in the coming days.

"I have accepted Brian Benjamin's resignation effective immediately," Hochul said. "While the legal process plays out, it is clear to both of us that he cannot continue to serve as Lieutenant Governor. New Yorkers deserve absolute confidence in their government, and I will continue working every day to deliver for them."

Benjamin, a Democrat, was arrested on Tuesday over the alleged arrangement, and entered a plead not guilty to the five counts against him.

An indictment from federal prosecutors in Manhattan alleged that Benjamin cooked up the scheme during his run for comptroller of New York City last year.

He’s alleged to have promised a $50,000 grant for a non-profit organization founded by a real estate developer, Gerry Migdol, who in turn procured donations for his campaign that were eligible for public matching funds.

U.S. Attorney Damian Williams of the Southern District of New York in Manhattan said during a press conference announcing the indictment Tuesday that the scheme was “a simple story of corruption.”

“Taxpayer money for campaign contributions — quid pro quo — this for that,” Williams said. “That’s bribery, plain and simple.”

Migdol was arrested late last year as part of the scheme, and is said to have cooperated with prosecutors on the charges against Benjamin.

Benjamin is also said to have promised the developer help with a zoning issue in exchange for campaign contributions, according to the indictment.

Attorneys for Benjamin said in a statement that the grant allegedly promised to Migdol wasn't unlawful, and that their legal strategy would focus on the benefits of the award.

"There has never been a federal case like this in America," attorneys James Gatta and William Harrington said. "Brian supported a $50,000 grant to Friends of Public School Harlem. Every dollar was to buy supplies for public school students in Harlem. There was nothing inappropriate about this grant."

His resignation comes after Gov. Kathy Hochul said last week that she had “the utmost confidence” in Benjamin, who she hand-picked last fall when she rose to power, following the resignation of former Gov. Andrew Cuomo over claims of sexual misconduct.

When he was being considered for the job last year, Benjamin did not tell the Hochul administration that his campaign had received a subpoena from investigators related to his run for city comptroller.

Benjamin, himself, had defended that decision last week, telling reporters that the State Police “did a thorough investigation,” and that he’d been cleared to serve through that review.

The charges against him have thrown Hochul's political future into turmoil. She's facing a primary election in June, and an uncertain general election in November.

In New York, candidates for governor and lieutenant governor run separate campaigns ahead of the primary election. The winners of the primary election then form a unified ticket that will appear on the ballot in November.

Because Benjamin was designated as the party's endorsed nominee for lieutenant governor at their state nominating convention in February, he'll still appear on the ballot in June. He would have to either move out of state, die, or participate in some political maneuvering that could, potentially, allow a replacement.

That means that, if Hochul wins her primary, and Benjamin remains on the ballot, she could have a running mate that she didn’t anticipate. That could cause some tension. Neither of Benjamin’s challengers currently support her.

Rep. Lee Zeldin, a Republican who’s considered his party’s favorite ahead of the June primary, said Benjamin’s arrest should reflect on Hochul.

"Kathy Hochul forced Brian Benjamin upon our state as Lieutenant Governor. He was such a bad pick,” Zeldin said. “When this corruption surfaced, Hochul tripled down. She owns this…all of it! Terrible judgment!"

The primary will be held on June 28, with the general election to follow in November.