Dr. Flojaune Cofer is alleging she was on the receiving end of a bribery call from the head of the California Black Chamber of Commerce president Jay King.
At the time of the call, Cofer was running to become the City’s first Black female mayor. Her opponent was former Assembly member Kevin McCarty.
At the heart of the alleged call was King seeking Cofer’s support in extending the employment contract of then City Manager Howard Chan who was under scrutiny for being the highest-paid city manager in the state in 2022 and 2023, according to the Sacramento Bee. King is alleged to have offered the bribe on behalf of a real estate developer.
It was also under Chan that the California Black Chamber of Commerce received $1.2 million in 19 city contracts, according to an opinion piece published by the Sacramento Bee.
McCarty campaigned on supporting Chan but reversed course after being sworn in last December.
Cofer alleges that during a call in late September, King called her offering a campaign donation, on behalf of a City developer, if she pledged to support Chan if elected mayor.
“In late September, I was told that I would be given a campaign contribution in exchange for agreeing to extend the city manager’s contract by one year, ” Cofer said during startling public comments at a Dec. 17, City Council meeting, just prior to a vote on whether or not to extend Howard Chan’s contract.
When King was asked about the allegation, he didn’t deny it or state she was telling an untruth.
”She might have misunderstood,” he said of the bribe allegation. “She might be in her emotions, I don’t know, but Flo’s a lot of things, but a liar ain’t one of them.”
According to the Sacramento Bee, King said that he spoke both about extending Chan’s contract and raising money for Cofer, but he denied referring to any specific donation.
“I said, I’ll help you raise money. I’ll… help you. But it’s got to be because you are going to help me stabilize this city. The city needs to be stable..” Asked if he specifically mentioned the developer, King said, “I might have said, ‘I will talk to him.’ I would have talked to all my friends.”
Read more at: Sacramento Bee