Findings in the Complaint of Susan Cacace against Adeel Mirza
The Westchester County Fair Campaign Practices Committee met via Zoom on June 06, 2024 to hear the complaints of Susan Cacace against Adeel Mirza and the campaign committee Mirza4DA. Ms. Cacace and Mr. Mirza are candidates in the Democratic primary for Westchester County District Attorney. Jeffrey Gasbarro, Esq. attended the Hearing as Ms. Cacace’s representative. Mr. Mirza did not have a representative at the Hearing although he submitted a written response to the complaints.
COMPLAINT #1: Ms. Cacace complained that a mailer sent by Mr. Mirza and Mirza4DA was misleading since the text and image of a section of a ballot made it appear as though Ms. Cacace ran only on the Republican and Conservative lines in the race for County Court Judge in 2015, whereas Ms. Cacace actually ran on five party lines, including the Democratic line.
FINDING: UNFAIR CAMPAIGN PRACTICE
The image of a computer-generated ballot that only showed the Republican and Conservative party lines was misleading to the public since it omitted the other three party lines, including the Democratic line. The mailer created the false impression that Ms. Cacace, a lifelong Democrat, did not run as a Democrat in 2015. In fact, Ms. Cacace did run as a Democrat in 2015. In addition, the ballot image, with a reference to “Westchester, NY Election Ballot, 11/4/15” was not a picture of an actual ballot, which is a flagrant violation of the Committee’s core standards.
The mailer violates the following FCPC Principle:
“The candidate will not use or condone any campaign material or advertisement that misstates, misrepresents or distorts material fact or any communication that misleads the public,”
and FCPC Guidance #8:
“A candidate should not make charges or assertions that are partially true and therefore misleading, nor should he/she use statements that are misleading or taken out of context,”
and FCPC Guidance#11:
“A candidate should not use campaign advertisements or materials that depict fictional or hypothetical events, for example, a commercial that begins, “Imagine….” A commercial that depicts a scene that never took place undermines the very distinction between true and false campaign advertising and opens the door to false, misleading, and fictional claims.”
COMPLAINT #2: Ms. Cacace complained that a second mailer sent by Mr. Mirza and Mirza4DA was misleading since the text states that Ms. Cacace’s “campaign is being bankrolled by Republican donors, including gun rights lawyers from the “2nd Amendment Law Firm” who want an “NRA A-rated” District Attorney;” the mailer includes an unsigned fictionalized letter with “Second Amendment Law Firm” as its letterhead and the sentence “In our effort to find an NRA-A rated District Attorney, we recommend Susan Cacace.” The mailer references an April 15, 2024 Politico article discussing a fundraiser held for Ms. Cacace by a registered Republican. The mailer’s text and fictionalized letter imply that Ms. Cacace’s views on guns are consistent with Republican donors, whereas the Politico article specifically implies that the registered Republican who held the fundraiser supports Ms. Cacace despite their differing views on guns.
FINDING: UNFAIR CAMPAIGN PRACTICE
The text and image of a fictional letter in the mailer create the false impression that Ms. Cacace’s views on guns are consistent with Republican donors, gun rights lawyers, and the NRA. In addition, the depiction of an unsigned fictional letter is especially egregious since it is false campaign advertising.
The mailer violates the following FCPC Principle:
“The candidate will not use or condone any campaign material or advertisement that misstates, misrepresents or distorts material fact or any communication that misleads the public,”
and FCPC Guidance #10:
“A candidate is urged to exercise great care when characterizing his/her opponent’s positions. In the absence of a specifically publicly stated position on an issue, a candidate should avoid attributing a position on this issue to her/his opponent,”
and FCPC Guidance#11:
“A candidate should not use campaign advertisements or materials that depict fictional or hypothetical events, for example, a commercial that begins, “Imagine….” A commercial that depicts a scene that never took place undermines the very distinction between true and false campaign advertising and opens the door to false, misleading, and fictional claims.”
Committee Members: Susan P. Guma, [Chair], Jennifer Mebes Flagg [Coordinator], LaRuth Gray, Kyle-Beth Hilfer, Lee Kinnally, Robert C. Kirkwood, Carole Princer Levy, Don Marra, Paul Bennett Marrow, Joy Rosenzweig, Susan Schwarz, John Stern.
Party representatives (ex officio): Republican Party, Democratic Party, Working Families Party.
The purpose of the Westchester County Fair Campaign Practices Committee is to help set an acceptable standard for political discussion by offering a forum for identifying unfair campaign practices and promoting a climate in which candidates conduct honest and fair campaigns. The Committee encourages candidates to conduct campaigns openly and fairly, to focus on issues and qualifications, to refrain from dishonest and defamatory attacks, and to avoid the use of campaign materials that distort the facts.
The Committee accepts written complaints from candidates about alleged unfair campaign practices. The Committee may then hold hearings to determine whether the action complained about is indeed unfair or whether it falls within acceptable political discourse. Among other things that the Committee will consider to be an unfair campaign practice is a misstatement of a material fact or any communication that misleads the public.
The Committee has no power to compel anyone or any group to stop doing what it has found to be unfair, nor does it have the authority or power to enforce election or other laws.
If the Committee acts on a complaint, it will release its findings to inform the public. The Committee may choose not to consider a complaint; in that case, a hearing is not held and the parties to the complaint are notified.
Statement of Principles of the Committee, as stated in its Manual, is available at www.faircampaignpractices.org. The Westchester County Fair Campaign Practices Committee believes that candidates should conduct their campaigns in accordance with the following principles:
The Candidate will conduct a campaign for public office openly and fairly, focusing on issues and qualifications.
The Candidate will not use or condone any campaign material or advertisement that misstates, misrepresents or distorts material fact or any communication that misleads the public.
The Candidate will neither engage in nor be involved with false or misleading attacks upon the character of an opponent, nor in invasions of privacy unrelated to fitness for office.
The Candidate will not participate in nor condone any appeal to prejudice.
The Candidate will clearly identify by name the funding source of all advertisements and campaign literature published and distributed.
The Candidate will not abuse the Westchester County Fair Campaign Practices Committee process in order to obtain political advantage. This includes, but is not limited to, announcing that he/she has filed a complaint, or quoting the Committee’s Findings unless the individual Finding cited is quoted in its entirety. The Committee considers selective quotation or misrepresentation of its Findings to be an unfair campaign practice.
The Candidate will publicly repudiate materials or actions made on behalf of their candidacy that violate this Statement of Principles.