Mamdani Wants More Money Less Than 24 Hours After Getting Elected

Democratic New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani wasted no time Wednesday turning his historic victory into another fundraising push.

Mamdani clinched the New York City mayoral race Tuesday night, defeating independent candidate and former Democratic New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa. Less than a day after being elected, the self-avowed socialist urged supporters to open their wallets once again, this time to bankroll his transition team.

“Remember how I told you a few months ago to stop sending us money? You can start again,” Mamdani said. “This transition requires staff, research, and an infrastructure that can meet this moment. And it will be made possible by the people who built and believe in this movement. So I hope you’ll make a donation at transition2025.com.”

“Last night we made history, and today we begin the work of making a new administration. Welcome to the transition. This is the period over the next few months where we build a city hall that delivers on the promises of our campaign to make New York City affordable and to make government accountable to the people it serves,” Mamdani said.

Mamdani outlined his priorities for building his administration.

“As we prepare to govern, we’ll start announcing the leaders who will help implement our agenda. People like deputy mayors who oversee entire areas of government and the commissioners who carry out the critical work of city agencies. These appointments will be driven by excellence, integrity, and hunger to solve old problems with new solutions,” Mamdani said. “Talking to organizers on the front lines of the fight to improve our city, government veterans with proven track records, policy experts from around the country and the world, and working people who know better than anyone what our neighborhoods deserve.”

Mamdani campaigned on a left-wing platform, promising to freeze rent for all stabilized tenants, make buses “fast and free,” provide taxpayer-funded childcare for every New Yorker from six weeks to five years old, build a network of city-run grocery stores, and raise taxes on corporations and high earners, according to his campaign site.

Mamdani’s post-election appeal echoed Independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders’ 2019 message, when the senator told supporters that winning against President Donald Trump would only be possible with enough financial backing. Like Sanders, Mamdani framed his fundraising plea as essential to sustaining a movement rather than merely collecting donations.

“As the FEC fundraising deadline for 2019 approaches, I am once again asking for your financial support,” Sanders said in 2019. “I’m not running all over the country raising enormous sums of money from some of the wealthiest people in America.”