De Blasio's Lobby Group Has Major Union Backing

Three unions gave $800,000 combined to Campaign for One New York, the group that lobbied for New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio's universal pre-kindergarten plan, according to filings the group provided to WNYC Tuesday and submitted to the state's Joint Commission on Public Ethics for the bimonthly filing deadline.

The group raised $1.76 million from 66 contributors. Three of the top donors are the American Federation of Teachers contributing $350,000; 1199 SEIU healthcare workers union contributing $250,000; and UNITE HERE, which represents hotel workers, contributing $200,000.

Through June, the lobby group spent $1.6 million, with more than half of that money paying for an ad starring First Lady Chirlane McCray.

With pre-k set to start in September, the group is taking on the rest of the mayor's agenda, such as affordable housing, and plans to continue fundraising and lobbying.