Hedge-fund billionaire Bill Ackman plans to bankroll a New York City mayoral campaign, arguing that his affluent associates are poised to flood the election with money in an effort to defeat Democratic Socialist frontrunner Zohran Mamdani.
“Importantly, there are hundreds of millions of dollars of capital available to back a competitor to Mamdani that can be put together overnight (believe me, I am in the text strings and the WhatsApp groups) so that a great alternative candidate won’t spend any time,” he wrote.
“So if the right candidate would raise his or her hand tomorrow, the funds will pour in.”
I awoke this morning gravely concerned about New York City. I thought “What has NYC become that an avowed socialist who has supported defunding the police, whose solution to lowering food prices is city-owned supermarkets, who doesn’t understand that freezing rents will only…
Ackman even alleged Michael Bloomberg, former NYC mayor and billionaire founder of the eponymous financial media company, would lend his entire election apparatus to any aspiring candidate to free them up to campaign rather than organize and fundraise.
It’s unclear whether New Yorkers would honor such a candidate. The recent intervention by Elon Musk in Wisconsin’s state supreme court election indicated the voting public does not always respond well to billionaires using their money to sway races.
Fortune has reached out to the Mamdani campaign for a response.
“If 100 or so of the highest taxpayers in my industry chose to spend 183 days elsewhere, it could reduce NY state and city tax revenues by ~$5 -$10 billion or more,” Ackman warned, drawing a comparison to a fellow hedge-fund founder. “Think Ken Griffin leaving Chicago for Miami—on steroids.”
Mamdani overcame repeated attacks about his limited experience in government and his Muslim faith to become the undisputed frontrunner with a convincing victory over establishment-backed Cuomo. The Democratic socialist is currently a heavy favorite in the November election against unpopular incumbent Eric Adams, who is running as an independent, and Curtis Sliwa, the Republican nominee and founder of the Guardian Angels.
Ackman, however, argued all these factors would support the emergence of a centrist candidate looking to position themself on the national stage. It could even be another businessman like Bloomberg, he suggested, although Ackman in an earlier post appeared to indicate he would not seek to run himself.
“For the aspiring politician there is no better way to get name recognition, build relationships with long-term donors, and to showcase oneself,” the hedge fund manager wrote, pitching the campaign like a business deal. “The risk/reward of running for mayor over the next 132 days is extremely compelling as the cost in time and energy is small and the upside is enormous.”
