Erin Stewart suspends campaign amid city credit card investigation

NEW BRITAIN, Conn. (WFSB) – Republican gubernatorial candidate Erin Stewart showed a reckless disregard for policies that govern the use of public funds, an independent investigation commissioned by the New Britain mayor’s office said.

As a result of the investigation, Stewart announced that she suspended her campaign.

Thursday, state police confirmed that they received a complaint and were asked to investigate.

“Connecticut State Police- Central District Major Crime has initiated an investigation into this matter,” troopers said in a statement.

Stewart is not facing charges at this point.

Democratic Mayor Bobby Sanchez on Thursday released results from an independent investigation, led by the Crumbie Law Group, into Stewart’s spending during her time as mayor.

Report released in its entirety

Read the entire 74-page report below:

What the investigation found

Sanchez said the investigation showed that the great majority of her expenditures were “wholly unrelated” to municipal business.

The spending questions surfaced when a report showed she racked up $207,000 on her city-issued credit card over her 12 years in office.

Receipts showed that she used the card to purchase cat toys, gag gifts, lingerie, makeup, home decorations, items for a Peppa Pig birthday party and other parties, and more.

The investigation said that Stewart’s card abuses significantly affected the city’s bottom line. It said she disguised her purchases as “misc office supplies” or “misc expense incurred in the admin. of the office.”

Investigation not finished, mayor’s office says

Sanchez noted on Friday that the investigation is not finished.

However, he said it concluded that Stewart misused the card in a blatant violation of city policies.

Sanchez also said that Stewart declined to be interviewed for the investigation, and instead asked for prepared questions to be forwarded to her.

The mayor said that when Stewart was told that could not be done, she ignored an additional request for an interview.

Sanchez released a statement on Thursday after the investigation results were released.

“From day one, I made a commitment to the people of New Britain that there would be accountability, transparency, and a full review of any allegations involving the misuse of taxpayer resources. This report confirms what many feared: there was a deeply troubling pattern of abuse involving public funds, repeated violations of City policy, and conduct that represented a serious breach of the public trust.

The findings outlined in this investigation are outrageous. According to the report, taxpayer-funded city credit cards were allegedly used for personal purchases, family expenses, political-related activity, private club memberships, clothing, gifts, travel, and other non-government purposes over the course of nearly a decade. The report further concludes that these were not isolated incidents, but a consistent pattern of conduct that investigators say violated City policy and undermined public confidence in government.

As I have said before, for too long there appeared to be different rules for certain individuals inside City Hall. That era is over. The people of New Britain work too hard and pay too much in taxes to accept this kind of alleged misconduct and abuse of public resources.

Consistent with the City’s previous action involving the city’s tax collector, these findings have been referred to both the Chief State’s Attorney’s Office and the United States Attorney’s Office for review and any law enforcement action deemed appropriate. As we have with the ongoing criminal investigation, the City will cooperate fully with any inquiry by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

In addition, the City will be pursuing all appropriate legal avenues to recover taxpayer funds wherever possible, including seeking restitution from the former mayor for any improper or unauthorized expenditures identified through this investigation.

This administration remains committed to restoring integrity, accountability, and public trust in City government. We will continue following the facts wherever they lead, and we will not allowtaxpayers to be left footing the bill for alleged misconduct by public officials.”

Response from the Stewart campaign

Stewart’s campaign issued the following statement about her campaign.

“Today, I am announcing that I am suspending my campaign for Governor of Connecticut effective immediately. The continued allegations from New Britain City Hall have understandably taken over this race and diverted attention away from the critical mission of saving our state from high taxes, high costs, the most expensive energy in America, and low opportunity for young people. As I said Tuesday night, public service comes with scrutiny, and I have always accepted that. Anyone who knows me — whether from my years serving the people of New Britain, working alongside colleagues, or simply as a friend, daughter, wife, and mother — knows the kind of leader I have always tried to be.

I take the allegations that have been made against me very seriously. And for that reason, I am suspending my gubernatorial campaign effective immediately so that I can focus on addressing those claims. Yesterday I requested copies of of the relevant documents and I will be reviewing them carefully. I will take accountability for any mistakes, and I intend to make full and complete restitution to the City of New Britain — my home — for anything that I owe.

It is extraordinarily difficult to make this decision because we have run an amazing campaign so far. We attracted more than 3,000 individual donors, gained commitments from over 600 delegates, assembled what I believe is the best political team in Connecticut, and I truly believe we were poised to win the convention, win the primary, and defeat Governor Lamont in November. I do not have enough words to express my heartfelt gratitude and love for everyone from across the state who joined our movement and believed in me personally. I know many of them are disappointed. I am too. But now is the time to step away and put my husband, our daughter, our son, my family, and their interests first.

I have spoken to Senator Ryan Fazio and informed him of my decision. I also told him that he has my full support in becoming our party’s nominee, and I encourage all delegates who were supporting me to now support him. This is the time for our party to come together and spend the next six months focused squarely on electing Republicans up and down the ballot. I have also spoken to my running mate, Tim Ackert, to let him know of my decision. Tim has been a source of unceasing hope, energy, grace, and encouragement for me, and I cannot adequately thank him for agreeing to be my running mate. I will always show up for him as he has for me.

It is my intention not only to suspend my campaign but also to step back from public life as I do what is necessary to address these questions and make things right. I cannot change the past, but I can make the next right decision — and this is it.

Thank you to my family. Thank you to my friends. Thank you to my amazing campaign team, and to my loyal supporters who have stood by me through so much over the last month.”

Tuesday, before the results of the investigation were released, Stewart issued a statement that said “expenditures by the mayor’s office were budgeted for, submitted, and subject to annual audit during her 12 years as mayor.”

During a campaign rally with her supporters on Tuesday, she did not address questions about whether any of the items listed in the original report were for personal use.

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