A state Supreme Court judge ruled against Putnam County Executive Kevin Byrne's re-election campaign Friday, Oct. 2, in a lawsuit challenging contributions it accepted above the legal limit; a separate State Board of Elections investigation into the campaign remains ongoing.
The decision by Justice Victor Grossman comes after Byrne for County Executive acknowledged that it received contributions from 10 donors that exceeded the applicable limit and said it had mailed refund checks to those contributors.
According to a statement issued on Oct. 2 by the campaign of Democratic county executive candidate Brett Yarris, the campaign refunded a total of $21,526.11 in excess contributions.
Grossman issued an injunction prohibiting Byrne for County Executive from accepting additional contributions above the legal limit or soliciting contributions that would put donors over the limit. The judge also ordered that any refunded money not accepted by contributors be turned over to the state comptroller within 20 days, according to the Yarris campaign.
Alex Mathis, campaign manager for Byrne, characterized the lawsuit as politically motivated and said the campaign had already addressed the contribution issue before Friday's court proceeding.
"The [Byrne] campaign was provided updated guidance by the State Board of Elections and complied with it," Mathis said. "Certain contributions were returned proactively and the most recent filing reflects that, making the practical issues raised in this lawsuit moot."
Mathis said Byrne's campaign still has more than $120,000 on hand despite the refunds.
The lawsuit was brought last month by five Putnam County residents — Kathleen Valletta McMorrow, John C. Couzens Jr., William O'Donnell, Robert Cullen and Stephanie Ellner — whose political registrations span several parties. The petition alleged that Byrne's campaign accepted contributions above the limit permitted under state Election Law.
At the heart of the dispute was whether Byrne's campaign could collect contributions based on a separate primary-election limit even though Byrne did not face a contested primary this year. The lawsuit contended that the applicable individual contribution limit for the 2026 election cycle was $3,639.80.
The State Board of Elections' Division of Election Law Enforcement has since taken a similar preliminary position.
In a Sept. 29 court filing, Jessica Norgrove, an attorney for the Division, said that because no primary was held for Putnam County executive, "it does not currently appear" that Byrne's contribution limit includes any primary contribution amounts. The filing said the campaign therefore may not accept more than $3,639.80 from a single contributor during the 2026 election cycle. The assessment was expressly made pending further investigation.
Azalea Dominguez, treasurer of Byrne for County Executive, acknowledged the excess contributions in a sworn affirmation filed Sept. 29.
Dominguez said the campaign has received contributions from approximately 599 donors since 2022 and that 10 donors had made contributions during that period exceeding the allowable limit.
Dominguez said she contacted the State Board of Elections after the issue came to her attention, informed officials of the error and advised them that refunds would be issued.
The campaign subsequently mailed refund checks to each of the 10 contributors, she said.
Dominguez also acknowledged that the campaign's website had not been updated after it became clear Byrne would not face a primary challenge and therefore did not reflect the $3,639.80 contribution limit.
"This oversight has been corrected, and the correct contribution limits are now on the website," she said in the court filing obtained by Mahopac News.
Mathis said the campaign uses a compliance firm responsible for interpreting and applying campaign-finance guidance and has reassessed that arrangement following the controversy.
"[We have] also reassessed the responsibilities of the firm and its personnel to make appropriate changes to strengthen oversight," he said.
Mathis criticized the plaintiffs and the Yarris campaign, calling the lawsuit a "politically motivated attack and a misuse of the Courts."
Friday's court action does not resolve a separate investigation by the State Board of Elections.
In its Sept. 29 filing, the Board's Division of Election Law Enforcement disclosed that Chief Enforcement Counsel Michael L. Johnson had already begun investigating substantially similar allegations before the voters' lawsuit was even filed.
The Division said its preliminary examination of campaign-finance records found transactions corresponding to those identified in the lawsuit and raised the possibility that the campaign received additional excess contributions.
"Moreover, [Byrne for County Executive] may have received additional overcontributions relevant to this matter," Norgrove wrote.
The filing said the investigation would continue unless Grossman directed otherwise.
The State Board was careful, however, not to make a final determination against Byrne or his campaign. Norgrove wrote that the chief enforcement counsel was taking "no position regarding the disposition of the merits" of the court case while the investigation continued.
According to Yarris' campaign, a Division of Election Law Enforcement attorney appeared in court Oct. 2 and said the state had independently verified the over-limit contributions identified by the plaintiffs and had identified additional contributions above the limit. Yarris' campaign said the attorney also confirmed that the investigation remains ongoing.
Mathis said the refunds have not significantly affected Byrne's ability to finance his re-election campaign.
"In the end, Byrne's biggest problem is that he has so much support that his campaign actually has to turn money away," he said.
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