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Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani has pocketed $8 million in his increasingly formidable bid to become New York City’s next mayor, maxing out his fundraising limit.
Mamdani, 33, announced Monday that his surging campaign not only hit the fundraising cap set by the city’s Campaign Finance Board, but did so with a groundswell of small-dollar donations — indicating fervent grassroots support.
“We are the first of any campaign in this entire cycle to accomplish this and we believe the fastest of any in New York City mayoral history,” he said during a celebratory rally outside City Hall.
“This has been made possible by contributions from close to 18,000 individuals.”
The fundraising haul further positions Mamdani, until recently a relatively unknown Queens state Assembly member, ahead of a crowded Democratic primary field that includes incumbent Mayor Eric Adams and former Gov. Andrew Cuomo.
Mamdani’s dark horse campaign has steadily gained momentum with a mix of viral videos and a litany of unapologetic progressive promises, from city-run grocery stores to a rent freeze.
His snowballing support translated into positive poll numbers that consistently show a second-place position behind Cuomo, as well as an impressive fundraising haul seemingly from largely everyday New Yorkers.
“We have built a small-dollar support network that has given us an average donation of somewhere around $80,” he said.
“This is in contrast to Andrew Cuomo, whose average donation is five to six times as much.”
Mamdani said he’ll stop fundraising and spend his $8 million in the bank on TV ads.
