POTENTIAL CONFLICTS OF INTEREST FOR NYC'S BOARD OF ELECTIONS BOSS

A NY1 investigation revealed that Mike Ryan, the executive director of New York City's Board of Elections, has a somewhat cozy relationship with Election Systems and Software (ES&S), the company that manufacturers the voting machines the city uses, perhaps blunting any criticism that could come its way. Ryan has particularly been under heat for defending the scanners, even as voters complained of broken scanners on Election Day. Since 2014, ES&S has paid for Ryan to go to at least nine so-called conferences all across the country. It's part of Ryan's role as a member of a secretive advisory board for the company.

(Mike Ryan, the executive director of New York City's Board of Elections, is facing pressure for a somewhat cozy relationship with the company that manufacturers the voting machines the city uses).

This all means a major contractor for Ryan's agency has paid him to fly across the country, stay in posh hotels, and bankrolled fancy dinners. On top of that, Ryan was not accurately disclosing these trips on his annual financial disclosure forms. Ryan argued he was told by the city's Conflicts of Interest Board that it was OK to participate if the trips were in the interest of the city. Prominent officials and groups — including the city comptroller, the good-government group Common Cause, and Brooklyn City Councilman Jumaane Williams — soon called for Ryan to resign. Mayor Bill de Blasio, too, said Ryan's moves were dicey, although he did not call for him to resign.

A TOP COMMISSIONER WAS FIRED — THEN STILL CAME TO WORK

The public was taken for a whirlwind of confusion Monday — and we didn't even get fired. Joe Esposito, the city's commissioner for the Office of Emergency Management (OEM), was told last Friday by Laura Anglin, the Deputy Mayor for Operations, that he got the boot. But when news outlets reached out to OEM on Monday, they were told Esposito was still the commissioner, and the mayor wouldn't say if the agency responsible for mobilizing the city's response to any emergency still had a boss:

Later Monday, the city said Esposito would stay on while it looks for his replacement, and that he may take a different job in the administration. De Blasio, who had been in Vermont for a progressive conference, admitted his hands-off approach to firing Esposito led to confusion, although he denied showing him the door because of the city's poor response to last month's snowstorm. The mayor instead said it was time for new leadership and an effort to modernize the emergency management agency, pointing to the challenges of climate change and the changing threat of terrorism.

MORE SIGNALS MAYOR MIKE IS TRYING TO BECOME PRESIDENT BLOOMBERG

This week, former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg gave the clearest signal yet that he is taking seriously a possible run for president: Taking a trip to Iowa, home to the first-in-the-nation nominating contest. Ostensibly, he was there to promote a new climate change documentary he helped fund. But he also attended events focused on renewable energy that had the feel of campaign stops and had private meetings with top Iowa Democrats. In interviews, he seems to be rehearsing his pitch to voters, and he told an interviewer he'd likely sell or put his business, Bloomberg L.P., into a blind trust if he won the White House. But first, he has to decide to take the leap, a call he says he'll make in the next couple of months.

(Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has given hints for years that he may run for president, but there's evidence he may follow through for 2020).

CUOMO TO HOLD HIS INAUGURATION IN…NEW JERSEY?

Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced earlier this week that he would deliver his January 1 Inauguration Address in grand style from Ellis Island. The governor said he chose the location because it reflects the core values of the nation and the state. But the decision to go to Ellis Island got New York City political insiders wondering: Would the exact area where the inauguration ceremony would take place be considered New York or New Jersey? A 1998 Supreme Court ruling found that about 90 percent of the island is actually part of New Jersey. Ultimately, though, Cuomo's address is supposed to take place on the small chunk that belongs to New York.

A 2019 RACE STARTING TO TAKE SHAPE IN QUEENS

The election for Queens district attorney is almost a year away, but another prominent borough politician jumped into the race early. Queens Borough President Melinda Katz launched her campaign Tuesday, hoping to become the borough's first female district attorney. Queens City Councilman Rory Lancman, who announced his campaign earlier this year, is also seeking the position.

(Richard Brown has been Queens' district attorney since 1991, but there are growing rumors that he will not seek reelection in 2019).

Both candidates have argued it's not too early to throw their hats into the ring, but their decisions come as the current DA, Richard Brown, has not announced whether or not he plans to seek reelection. Incumbent district attorneys in New York City don't usually face significant primary challenges, and the 86-year-old has served in the position since 1991. But there are rumors that he will not seek reelection in 2019. In a statement, Brown said he hadn't made any decision yet but will in the new year.

SETTING THE STAGE FOR BIG PAY RAISES IN ALBANY

New York state legislators are on track to get a 63 percent pay increase. A compensation commission composed of current and former comptrollers recommended Thursday gradual pay raises for the governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, state comptroller, the 213 members of the state Assembly and Senate, as well as cabinet officials in the governor's administration. At the same time, the compensation commission backed limits to how much lawmakers can earn in the private sector, placing a cap of 15 percent of their public salary. Under the recommendations outlined Thursday, the governor would be paid $250,000 by 2022, up from the current $179,000. Lawmakers would also receive a phased-in hike from $79,500 to $130,000 by 2021.

The commission's decision came as a bit of a surprise, but lawmakers have for years pointed to the fact that they haven't had a pay raise in nearly 20 years. Many lawmakers — especially those from high-cost areas in and around New York City — have long argued that their pay hasn't kept up with inflation and doesn't reflect work they do outside of the six-month legislative session. The pay commission was formed as a means to not only remove politics from the matter, but also to insulate lawmakers from the potentially venomous optics of voting to give themselves more money, especially given the legislature's parade of corruption arrests in recent years. The official report is due Monday, but barring any action by the legislature, these recommendations will automatically take effect.

DE BLASIO MEETS BEN CARSON — AMID THE QUESTION IF THE MAYOR WILL LOSE CONTROL OF NYCHA

Mayor de Blasio and Ben Carson, the secretary of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), met for the first time Thursday to discuss the city's crumbling public housing. The face-to-face came a week before the federal government, the U.S. Attorney's Office, and the city are required to tell a federal judge how they want to fix the city's struggling public housing system. Last month, that federal judge rejected a proposed consent decree by the city and the feds to install a monitor to oversee the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA).The judge said it wasn't good enough. Now, the question may be will there be an all-out takeover of NYCHA, possibly administered by the court or the federal government. For his part, de Blasio is opposed to it.

Neither HUD nor City Hall told NY1 if that came up at Thursday's meeting, but there are some in the Trump Administration who think a federal takeover is a good idea. Lynne Patton, the regional administrator for the Federal Housing Department, has been taking to Twitter to blast the conditions NYCHA tenants face.

A FLURRY OF COURT FILINGS IN NEW YORK OVER TRUMP'S EX-LAWYER

Federal prosecutors in New York filed court filings Friday that say President Donald Trump's former lawyer, Michel Cohen, shouldn't avoid prison time. In a sentencing memo, prosecutors say that Cohen's information in their investigation into potential campaign finance violations was useful, but they also say he failed to disclose details about criminal activity he engaged in or had knowledge of. His alleged crimes include tax evasion, making false statements to a financial institution and Congress, and illegal campaign contributions.

(Michael Cohen, former lawyer to President Donald Trump, leaves his apartment building on New York's Park Avenue, Friday, Dec. 7, 2018. Richard Drew/AP).

That news came on the same day as special counsel Robert Mueller's office issued court filings that found the former New York City council candidate was in touch as far back as 2015 with a Russian who offered "political synergy" with the Trump election campaign and proposed a meeting between the candidate and Russian President Vladimir Putin, the federal special counsel said.