‘God help us!’ Dismal driving record could ‘doom’ NYC Comptroller Brad Lander’s likely mayoral bid
Brad Lander wants to be mayor of New York City, but he’s still a blatant traffic scofflaw — despite pledging during his successful run for comptroller to improve his dismal driving record.
The Democratic socialist — who multiple sources expect to soon announce he’s challenging Mayor Adams in next year’s Democratic primary — has racked up six parking tickets since March, giving him a grand total of 133 traffic summonses since 2013, a Post analysis of city records show.
Ten of the tickets were issued to lead-footed Lander for being caught on camera speeding in school zones.
Lander has long pushed a green agenda aimed at getting New Yorkers to give up driving and take mass transit, but he’s chauffeured daily around the Big Apple by his NYPD security detail as comptroller.
His Totoya Prius, which he uses for personal business, is regularly slammed with summonses.
Eleven of the tickets — including one for speeding — occurred after Lander was sworn in as comptroller in 2022.
However, he failed to disclose any of them publicly — as well as another speeding ticket and a parking ticket received in December 2021 — breaking yet another pledge he made after The Post first exposed his horrific driving record.
In all, the city’s chief fiscal watchdog shelled out a whopping $5,895 in fines and late fees on traffic tickets since April 2016 and currently owes another $115 for a summons he received July 16 for parking in a “No Standing” zone, records show.
Payment information before April 2016 was not available.
Although Lander’s vehicle hasn’t been caught on camera speeding or running red lights since The Post exposed his latest speeding ticket in May 2023, he still continues to snub traffic rules by parking illegally near his home in Park Slope, Brooklyn.
Hank Sheinkopf, a longtime Democratic campaign strategist, predicted Lander will have a hard time convincing voters he’s not a hypocrite, considering he once championed a law as a Brooklyn councilman to crack down on reckless driving and continues to promote congestion tolling and other initiatives aimed at getting cars off the road.
“He’s acts holier than thou, but he’s a lawbreaker, … and voters will feel he can’t be trusted with our safety,” Sheinkopf said. “If you can’t trust him not to break the law as comptroller, what do you think he’d be as mayor? A lawbreaker-in-chief?”
Councilman Robert Holden (D-Queens) said, “God help us if this guy ever gets even close to Gracie Mansion.”
“Scofflaw-wannabe-mayor Brad Lander continues to endanger lives and break laws,” he said. “It’s bad enough having a do-nothing, performative comptroller; now we have one who flagrantly disregards public safety. He’s a menace to society in his office and his car.”
Republican Curtis Sliwa, who lost the 2021 mayoral election, said Lander is among the well-documented, long list of socialists and other far-left NYC pols with anti-car agendas who are menaces behind the wheel.
“They hate driving and drivers – except when it comes to themselves,” said the Guardian Angels founder, who plans to run for mayor again next year.
After The Post first exposed Lander’s history of dangerous driving in April 2021, Lander wrote an essay for the transportation-focused Streetsblog NYC website in which he pledged to “make public how many parking or moving violations I get” each month.
“Knowing that I’ll have to do it will make me slow down and follow parking rules,” he added.
He briefly recorded the violations on the City Council’s website but stopped after winning the comptroller’s race in November 2021.
Lander spokesperson Kat Capossela declined to address Lander’s failed pledge to reveal all his traffic summonses publicly or his interest in running for mayor.
Instead, she said, “Brad has received one speed camera violation since becoming Comptroller, none over the past year, and has paid all of his parking tickets.”
