Queens council hopeful continues voter misinformation campaign
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Jonathan david rinaldi, a candidate for city council district 29, has continued posting fake news stories, misleading campaign ads and AI-generated videos to his social media sites, including this poster copied from ones for Rep. Alexandria ocasio-cortez that misleading calls on voters to re-elect rinaldi, who has never held public office. screenshot via rinaldi’s facebook
By Ryan Schwach
A Republican City Council candidate in Queens has doubled down on posting AI-generated videos and doctored photos seemingly designed to mislead voters in the weeks after the Eagle first reported on his misinformation campaign.
Jonathan David Rinaldi, who is challenging Democrat Lynn Schulman for her seat in the Council, told the Eagle earlier this month that his social media account had been hacked but has appeared to dispute that narrative by posting more and more fraudulent photos and videos in support of his candidacy.
In the weeks since the Eagle first reported that Rinaldi had posted a number of fake news stories touting his campaign and disparaging his opponent, the controversial candidate has posted more fictional news stories, fake text exchanges, bizarre AI videos and a series of fake endorsements that have angered local groups.
Despite being threatened with litigation by multiple outlets whose logo he used to spread fake articles, Rinaldi’s posts have remained up. In fact, he’s only doubled down on his apparent misinformation campaign.
Rinaldi’s initial posts – which he continues to claim he did not make – include fake articles appearing in the Eagle, Queens Chronicle and New York Post about endorsements he did not actually get from lawmakers like Assemblymember Andrew Hevesi, former Governor Andrew Cuomo and City Councilmember Robert Holden. Some of the fraudulent stories also claimed Schulman had endorsed Zohran Mamdani for mayor, which she has not.
The Queens Chronicle reported that other posts on his page, made to look like endorsements from the Asian Wave Alliance and Teachers for Choice organizations, were also faked.
Rinaldi claimed his account had been hacked, but his campaign was posting videos of him speaking at public meetings while also posting the fake content.
On Monday, Rinaldi’s account posted a picture announcing an endorsement slate from the Queens Jewish Alliance that had been altered to include Rinaldi’s name.
The group’s chairperson, Sorolle Idels, said she reached out to the Queens district attorney to press charges.
The DA’s office did respond to a request for comment.
“I really took offense to it,” Idels told the Eagle. “I would like to press charges, I am very upset about it. You're deceiving my people.”
Idels said she was aware of Rinaldi’s previous fake posts before she saw the one that involved her organization.
“This person is dishonest,” she said. “Someone who can deceive the public deserves to be apprehended appropriately.”
Republican City Council candidate Johnathan David Rinaldi has not stopped posting fake news stories, like the one depicted above, and doctored images after claiming his account was hacked last week. Screenshot via Rinaldi’s Facebook
On Friday, Rinaldi posted four fictional articles claiming that Schulman was dropping out of the race. The articles were made to look like they were published on the websites of the Daily News, Spectrum News, QNS and CNN.
Schulman confirmed to the Eagle that she is not dropping out.
The posts were accompanied by seemingly AI-generated videos of fake news anchors reporting on the fictional story claiming that "community pressure” and “health” forced Schulman to leave the race.
Rinaldi has also begun posting a slew of apparent AI-generated videos featuring fake supporters talking and singing about him.
The videos, which feature a watermark from AI video generator Sora, include videos of fake locals expressing their support for Rinaldi, often repeating the phrase, “Rinaldi is real, Rinaldi is the truth.”
One video depicts a group of Queens students chanting in front of a school: “Make it real, make it Rinaldi, let our voices shine. We're the kids of District 29. Make it real, make it Rinaldi, together we rise. Forest Hills hearts, Queens pride.”
Other videos show AI rabbis, veterans, seniors and youth expressing support for the Republican candidate.
Despite angering a number of people, Rinaldi’s posts have intensified in recent days.
A fake article was posted shortly after the Eagle first published a story about his posts claiming that Schulman was under investigation for hacking into Rinaldi’s account. The article was made to look like it was published in the New Amsterdam News.
A doctored text thread between Holden and Queens civic leader Christina Wilkinson was also posted.
Posts made to Council candidate Jonathan David Rinaldi’s Facebook account appear to be AI-generated videos depicting supporters. Screenshot via Rinaldi’s Facebook
The fabricated texts show Wilkinson asking “Holden” if he endorsed Rinaldi.
The fake Holden responds, “Yes.”
“They are saying you didn’t,” Wilkinson responded.
“He's a common sense candidate with common sense endorsements,” the fake Holden answered.
“Jonathan Rinaldi’s behavior is deeply troubling and completely unacceptable,” the real Holden told the Eagle in a statement. “Using AI to fabricate endorsements and edit a fake text to mislead voters shows he’s not fit for public office.”
Rinaldi continued to deny he was the one making the posts in text messages last week.
“I personally did not make any of them and now you are all scared because I’m going to win,” he said.
“I am not misleading anyone, I'm telling the truth that they all know and believe,” he added.
Though the posts have riled up a number of people, it’s unclear if there will be any consequences for Rinaldi.
“There are some Campaign Finance Board rules that this conduct seems to violate, but enforcement might require one or more of these people to file a complaint,” said election lawyer Sarah Steiner.
Rinaldi has not successfully qualified for public matching funds with the Campaign Finance Board due to a host of reasons, including not turning in certain documents and having discrepancies in the ones he did file.
Had he been able to get the funds, the CFB may be more inclined to take action against him.
“There is extra scrutiny, even of conduct, when public funds are involved,” Steiner said. “But not much to do at the moment unless he had qualified.”
The city’s Campaign Finance Board declined to comment.
When asked if she has or would consider making a complaint, Schulman said she was focused on her re-election campaign and “engaging with [her] community on the issues that matter most to them.”
Steiner said that the posts could be considered dangerous and misleading.
“This sort of use of AI is a perfect example of its dangers,” she said. “AI has the potential to mislead people. In addition, history a few years or decades from now may not be able to be clear on what really happened, and what was created.”
His campaign otherwise has not gained much traction, with no real endorsements and little in the way of fundraising.
Rinaldi has only netted $100 for his campaign in a single donation from Flushing lawyer David Bellon, who unsuccessfully ran as a Republican for one of New York’s U.S. Senate seats last year and for a Supreme Court spot in Queens in 2018.
Although his public reach is limited, Rinaldi’s fake posts have misled some who have commented on them, congratulating him for the endorsements he didn’t get.
Since entering the public sphere in 2023 when he challenged Councilmember Jim Gennaro, Rinaldi has gained a reputation for causing trouble. He’s been accused of harassing political opponents on the campaign trail.
He also has become a fixture at a number of local community boards. One community board leader said they worry every time he signs up to speak at a meeting.
Posts made to Council candidate Jonathan David Rinaldi’s Facebook account appear to be AI-generated videos depicting supporters. Screenshot via Rinaldi’s Facebook
“It's kind of unpredictable,” said the board member, who requested anonymity due to fear of retribution from Rinaldi. “He used to come to every single meeting.”
While the board member said Rinaldi has gotten better at staying on topic, he often rants about unrelated issues and harasses members. Police have allegedly accompanied Schulman to a number of community board meetings because Rinaldi has attempted to harass her in the past, the board member said.
Correction: An earlier version of this story stated that David Bellon ran for a Supreme Court seat in 2024. That is incorrect. Bellon ran for U.S. Senate in 2024 and for Supreme Court in 2018. We regret this error.
