How China Influences Elections in New York, America's Largest City

Beijing-friendly social clubs have foiled careers of politicians opposed to Chinese govt

- Michael Forsythe, Jay Root, Bianca Pallaro and David A. Fahrenthold

NEW YORK - In New York City, social clubs backed by China undermined a congressional candidate who once challenged the regime on Chinese television.

They helped unseat a state senator for attending a banquet with the president of Taiwan. And they condemned a City Council candidate on social media for supporting Hong Kong democracy.

In the past few years, these organizations have quietly foiled the careers of politicians who opposed China's authoritarian government while backing others who supported policies of the country's ruling Communist Party.

The groups, many of them tax-exempt non-profits, have allowed America's most formidable adversary to influence elections in the country's largest city, The New York Times found.

The groups are mostly "hometown associations" of people hailing from the same town or province in China. Some have been around for more than a century, while dozens of others have sprung up over the past decade.

Like other heritage clubs in a city of immigrants, they welcome newcomers, organize parades and foster social connections.

But many hometown associations have become useful tools of China's consulate in Manhattan, according to dozens of group members, politicians and former prosecutors. Some group leaders have family or business in China and fear the consequences of bucking its authority.

Consulate officials have enlisted them to intimidate politicians who support Taiwan or cross Beijing's other red lines. In one case, a Chinese intelligence agent and several hometown leaders targeted the same candidate.

This meddling may seem modest, involving politicians who are unlikely to affect international policy. But China is determined to quash dissent in its diaspora before it spreads back home, said the University of Southern California's Audrye Wong, a fellow at the American Enterprise Institute who studies Chinese influence.