If you ever wondered how far New York politics could sink, socialist mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani just gave us the answer: straight to Dubai. The far-left darling of Astoria, who loves to brag that his campaign is “powered by regular citizens,” has now been caught raking in thousands of dollars in potentially illegal foreign donations, according to the New York Post. That’s right, Mamdani’s grassroots movement apparently extends all the way across international borders and into the Middle East.
Federal law couldn’t be clearer: foreign nationals cannot contribute to U.S. political campaigns, period. Yet Mamdani’s filings show that roughly 170 donations, totaling about $13,000, came from overseas sources. Among those donors was none other than his own mother-in-law, who happens to live and work in Dubai. Because nothing says “power to the people” quite like foreign cash flowing into a socialist campaign for mayor of America’s largest city.
Even worse, Mamdani’s team hasn’t bothered to refund the money. As of now, records indicate 88 donations, worth around $7,190, still haven’t been returned. When confronted, his campaign issued the kind of mealy-mouthed statement you’d expect from a career politician: “We will of course return any donations that are not in compliance with CFB law.” Translation: We got caught, and now we’re pretending to care about the rules.
Curtis Sliwa, who’s running as the Republican alternative to this socialist circus, hit the nail on the head. “Where there’s smoke, there’s fire,” Sliwa told the Post. “There is probably a lot more in terms of foreign money.” And he’s right. This isn’t some bookkeeping mistake—it’s a pattern. Mamdani’s campaign has already been accused of hiding behind dark money PACs that may also be channeling foreign cash into the race. If that’s true, it’s not just unethical; it’s dangerous. As Sliwa pointed out, foreign powers don’t have to invade America if they can simply buy influence in our elections.
What makes this whole thing even more insulting is that Mamdani has raised more than $4 million in private donations and pulled in an outrageous $12.7 million in taxpayer-funded matching money. Yet with all that, he couldn’t resist the temptation of a few thousand extra bucks from overseas?
The Mamdani campaign likes to talk about “equity” and “justice.” Maybe they should start by following the law. New Yorkers deserve better than a socialist who’s running his campaign like a foreign money laundering operation.
Leave a Comment