Longtime New York state comptroller wins Democratic designation in crowded race

Tom DiNapoli has been designated as a candidate for New York State Comptroller with the Democratic Party five times. But his fifth and latest designation, which he achieved with 90% of the vote Friday afternoon in Syracuse, was the “sweetest of them all.” 

DiNapoli will face a primary challenge from other Democrats in 2026, his first in a 19-year tenure as comptroller. 

DiNapoli, however, faces his first primary challenge in 19 years as state comptroller, a lesser-known statewide office that oversees the pension fund for all New York State public-sector employees. 

DiNapoli’s potential sixth term as comptroller will not come without a fight. In a four-candidate field, only two attended the Syracuse convention — DiNapoli and Drew Warshaw, the former COO of an affordable housing nonprofit. 

Warshaw, 44, is running to his opponent’s left, and the political newcomer is working with Fight Agency, a consulting firm for progressive candidates that has worked with New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Maine Senate hopeful Graham Platner. 

He claims that DiNapoli has mismanaged the fund and that it has underperformed for the majority of the nearly-two-decade span that DiNapoli has been at the helm and instead overspends on bankers. 

“One guy invests $300 billion, and over the last 19 years, instead of investing that money in homes New Yorkers can afford, he has invested that money with 664 Wall Stree,t who charge New York taxpayers a billion dollars in fees,” Warshaw said.  

The comptroller rebuked the criticism as uninformed, citing his experience and the strength of New York’s pension fund — the third largest in the United States. 

“They make up false numbers,” DiNapoli said. “It’s all made-up stuff. It’s all made-up documents. The facts are, on the pension fund, we are well managed. It’s easy to say, ‘Oh, we could have done X, Y, and Z.’ When you invest, you invest in looking forward, not looking backward.” 

DiNapoli has been criticized by both Warshaw and Raj Goyle, another candidate for comptroller who did attend the Syracuse convention, for the inclusion of Palantir stock in the index funds that New York State’s pension fund is invested in. 

The comptroller responded that “stock picking” is not a sensible investment strategy, believing that real change on the subject of immigration and the actions of ICE officers must come from the administration in Washington, such as “having a new congress and a different president.” 

“There are calls to divest from lots of things,” DiNapoli said. “It’s not just Palantir — there are other companies that we’re invested in that have contracts with the federal government that relate to [immigration].” 

Instead of attending the convention, Goyle held a protest at 26 Federal Plaza in New York City Friday, protesting DiNapoli’s investment in Palantir.

“I’m demanding that Tom DiNapoli stop investing New Yorkers’ pension funds in Palantir, a company that helps enable ICE’s reign of terror,” he said in a press release.   

He was asked by reporters at the protest whether his stance on immigration has changed from when he ran for congress in Kansas in 2010, where he called for a “crackdown on hiring undocumented workers,” according to the Judge Street Journal. Goyle did not answer the question. 

According to a report from City & State, DiNapoli attended a fundraiser on Thursday hosted by Mark Wladis, who owns a law firm in East Syracuse.

Wladis has donated to Republicans in the past, including Onondaga County Executive candidates Ryan McMahon and Joanie Mahoney — the latter of whom is now the president of SUNY ESF. Wladis donated $5,000 to Dinapoli’s campaign in 2022. 

“I’m not embarrassed by the fact that I have a lot of bipartisan support,” DiNapoli said. “He’s raised money for [New York Attorney General] Leticia James. He’s raised money for [Speaker of the New York City Council] Julie Menin. Like lots of people, they raise people for Democrats and Republicans.” 

The fundraiser did not seem to affect New York Democratic leadership. Jay Jacobs, the chair of the New York State Democratic Committee, endorsed DiNapoli prior to the convention along with incumbents Kathy Hochul and James — a move he is permitted to do, he noted, as long as he runs a fair convention and primary election. 

“You know, you get your money where you can get your money. You’ve got to raise money, so I don’t have any criticisms about it,” said Jacobs. 

The vote for comptroller designation went second at Friday’s convention — after Attorney General and before Governor. State committee members were given the option to vote for the two candidates, DiNapoli and Warshaw, on their clickers — the first button, green, for DiNapoli, and the second button, red, for Warshaw.  

Nobles Crawford, a state committee member from the 71st assembly district from Washington Heights and East Harlem, nominated Warshaw. He asked his fellow committee members not to necessarily canvas or donate to the challenger, but just allow him to appear on the ballot without paying and petitioning for signatures. 

The party misspelled both candidates’ names on the big screen as votes piled in: “Dinapoli” for DiNapoli, and “Warsaw” for Warshaw. 

Ultimately, Crawford’s plea was not enough. Drew Warshaw drew only 10% of the vote, giving DiNapoli the Democratic designation on June’s primary ballot. 

Warshaw intends to petition to add his name to the ballot.