A former Republican State Senate candidate has been ordered to payback over $200,000 in public campaign matching funds following a state investigation.
In 2024, Caleb Slater ran an unsuccessful campaign to represent New York’s 48th State Senate district, a district that includes all of Cayuga County and parts of Onondaga County, including Syracuse. Following the election, Slater had been accused of giving people gift cards in exchange for campaign donations and attributing some contributions to fake donors during his campaign in order to increase the amount of public matching funds he would receive from the state.
According to syracuse.com, the New York Public Campaign Finance Board has ordered Slater to repay the $238,094 in public funds he received during the campaign, plus an additional $47,958 in fines and penalties for misrepresentation and fraud, trading items of value for campaign contributions, and spending funds with a company in which he was a part owner.
Slater announced his intent to run in 2023. In 2024, fellow Republican Fanny Villareal of Onondaga County announced she would also seek the Republican nomination, leading to the Cayuga County Republican Committee endorsing Slater while the Onondaga County Republican Committee backed Villareal.
After defeating Villareal in the primary, Slater would face off against incumbent Rachel May, a Democrat, in the general election, where he was defeated by over 22,000 votes.
