A Democratic Socialist expected to coast to victory in a deep-blue Queens state Assembly district is facing questions after briefly asking supporters to help cover his rent and grocery bills while waiting to take office.
Brian Romero, the Democratic nominee for New York’s 34th Assembly District, removed a GoFundMe campaign Friday after the New York Post inquired about the fundraiser, which sought $2,000 to help with living expenses.
Romero said he left his job as a senior adviser to state Sen. Kristen Gonzalez earlier this year after receiving ethics guidance once he became a candidate for Assembly, according to the Post. While he handily won June’s Democratic primary and faces no Republican challenger in November, Romero said he has exhausted his savings while searching for consulting work and has been unable to collect unemployment benefits.
“As many of you know, I had to leave my full time job in the legislature when I got on the ballot for our Assembly race,” Romero wrote on the since-deleted fundraising page, according to the Post. “I’m excited that we won and I saved for months to get by but I’ve now depleted my savings as I’m close to closing down some consulting gigs.”
The fundraiser said the money would help cover rent and groceries while he navigated the transition to elected office. According to the Post, the page had raised more than $1,000 from 13 donors before Romero removed it Friday.
The online appeal drew criticism because Romero is expected to easily win the heavily Democratic district, where he would earn the state Assembly’s $142,000 annual salary once sworn into office, in addition to legislative per diem payments while the Legislature is in session.
Jordan Libowitz, vice president for communications at Citizens for Ethics in Washington, told the Post he could not recall another instance of a lawmaker-elect publicly asking for financial assistance while awaiting office.
Romero told the newspaper he removed the fundraiser after discussing it with friends and described creating it as “a mistake.” He also said he did not keep any of the money that had been donated.
“I decided to take it down. It was kind of done pretty quickly in consultation with some friends,” Romero told the Post.
Instead, Romero said friends offered to help him financially while he looked for work.
“I have friends I just reached out to directly who said, ‘We’ll take care of it.’ They’re just dear friends who know me, they know politics. They know sometimes these long breaks are really tough,” he told the newspaper.
State payroll records cited by the Post show Romero earned $106,469 last year as a legislative aide. The newspaper also reported he lives with his partner in a Jackson Heights apartment that rents for about $2,600 a month.
Romero did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
