Momentum is clearly with former Gov. Andrew Cuomo — bringing in the largest haul in the latest fundraising period even though he just jumped in the race.
According to numbers provided to NY1 from many of the top-tier mayoral candidates, Cuomo led fundraising in the last two-month period — from mid-January to mid-March. He brought in more than $1.5 million into his campaign in just 13 days.
Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani, a relative unknown from Queens, came in second, with $845,000 — an impressive figure for the left-leaning lawmaker.
What You Need To Know
- In less than two weeks, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo raised $1.5 million for his mayoral campaign
- Queens Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani raised $845,000 for his campaign, coming in second
- City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams did not meet the fundraising threshold for public matching funds
Mamdani has generated a social media following, which has morphed into real support on the ground, his campaign says.
During the last two months, nearly 11,000 people have donated to his campaign — far more than what any of the other mayoral candidates reported.
"I think it shows New Yorkers are hungry for a different kind of politics, a kind of politics that puts working people first," Mamdani told NY1.
Candidates are required to file these fundraising figures with the city's Campaign Finance Board by midnight on Monday. These numbers will determine who qualifies for the city's very generous campaign finance public matching program — where qualifying dollars are generously matched at an 8 to 1 ratio.
An independent expenditure committee to boost Cuomo’s candidacy has raised almost $1.5 million since the beginning of March.
New fundraising figures from Fix the City show some of its biggest donors include Matthew Hulsizer, the founder of a Chicago-based technology and financial services firm, and Scott Rechler, the chairman of the realty firm RXR Realty. Each gave $250,000. Former Trump communications director Anthony Scaramucci’s investment firm also contributed as did Ken Langone, the co-founder of Home Depot.
Charter Communications, the parent company of NY1, also contributed to the committee.
Already, four of the top tier candidates for mayor have received millions of dollars in public matching money.
Meanwhile, Mayor Eric Adams has not. He was denied funds in December because of his federal indictment.
Late Monday, he had not yet released his fundraising figures despite being asked multiple times.
"I started raising early, and I was pleased with the team,” the mayor said on Monday. “Not only are they catching up to me on fundraising, but they’re catching up to me on policies."
City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, the latest entry into the race, did not meet the public funds threshold during this period. She jumped into the race a week before the period ended.
This means the earliest she could receive public matching money for her campaign — seen as integral to a serious candidacy — would be late May.
"We did phenomenally on fundraising in just five days, something that others have not been able to do if ever,” Speaker Adams said. “I am really, really proud of our efforts. We're going up, up, up and up."