A version of this article first appeared in CNBC’s Inside Wealth newsletter by Robert Frank, a weekly guide for high-net-worth investors and consumers. Sign up to receive future editions directly to your inbox.
A super PAC supporting Andrew Cuomo and opposing Zoran Mamdani in the New York mayoral race has raised more than $40 million, with millions of dollars coming from prominent billionaires and family members, according to election filings.
New York billionaires Bill Ackman, Ronald Lauder, William Lauder, Barry Diller and Dan Loeb have all made large donations to a special committee called “Fix the City” supporting independent candidate Andrew Cuomo, according to election filings. Other non-New Yorkers who have donated to the group include casino magnate Steve Wynn and the world’s richest woman, Alice Walton.
The wave of big money underscores the growing fear of a Mamdani victory among wealthy New Yorkers and many national conservatives. Mamdani, who calls himself a democratic socialist, has a platform that includes a rent freeze, free buses, free child care for all and government-run grocery stores. He is proposing an additional 2% tax on New Yorkers making more than $1 million a year to help pay for the program.
Even though Mr. Mamdani maintains a double-digit lead in most polls, a huge money machine based in several pro-Cuomo PACs is gaining momentum as Election Day approaches. Fix the City is by far the largest of the so-called “independent spending committees,” political fundraising groups similar to super PACs that can accept unlimited funds and were created to circumvent New York City’s campaign finance limits. They are not tax deductible to donors and are not allowed to coordinate a particular candidate’s campaign and activities.
Fix the City has raised more than $32 million, according to filings, with many large donations coming after Mamdani’s primary victory in June. Two other anti-Mamdani committees include “Defend NYC,” which raised $2.5 million, and “New Yorkers for a Better Future,” which raised $1.5 million.
The PAC supporting Mamdani, New Yorkers for Lower Costs, has raised just under $2 million. The only wealth donor known to have donated to the task force is Elizabeth Simmons, the daughter of the late billionaire hedge fund investor James Simmons.
Many of Fix the City’s largest donations came before the primaries, including two donations totaling $8.3 million in June from Michael Bloomberg. Mr. Bloomberg met with Mr. Mamdani in September to offer advice, but has not made any donations to the organization since then.
Many billionaires increased their donations after the primaries. Joe Gebbia, co-founder of Airbnb, Tesla board member and White House chief design officer, gave two $1 million gifts each to two pro-Cuomo PACs in October.
Gebbia, like several other billionaires mentioned in this article, declined to comment on the gift. No other comments were received.
Democratic mayoral candidate Zoran Mamdani speaks during a press conference celebrating his first victory with city labor union leaders and members on July 2, 2025 in New York.
Angela Weiss | AFP | Getty Images
The Lauder family, heirs to the Estée Lauder fortune, have donated more than $2 million to anti-Mandani committees. Ronald Lauder donated $750,000 to Fix the City in September, and Estée Lauder Companies Chairman William Lauder donated $500,000 in late August. Other members of the Lauder family have collectively donated more than $750,000 since June.
More than six members of the Tisch family have donated their wealth to Fix the City, from real estate and hospitality to energy, packaging and sports. In October, Abigail, Louise, Maud, and Laurie Tisch each donated $100,000, and Alice Tisch donated $500,000. Elizabeth, Jonathan, and Merrill Tisch also donated to the PAC after the primary.
The Tisch family’s donation carries added symbolism because Jessica Tisch, the daughter of Lowe’s CEO James Tisch, is New York City’s popular crime chief and oversees the city’s continued decline in crime. Mamdani said he intended to keep Tisch as chief minister, but also called for an overhaul of the police force and the establishment of a new “Public Security Bureau.”
Many of Cuomo’s big donors are hedge funds. Bill Ackman, who supported President Donald Trump’s re-election last year, donated $250,000 to Fix the City in October, following two donations of $250,000 each before the primary. Third Point’s Dan Loeb donated $100,000 in June and another $100,000 in October.
Some of the biggest donors appear to have only loose ties to New York City.
Steve Wynn, a longtime Republican donor who lists his address as Las Vegas, donated $500,000 to Fix the City in October. When Alice Walton, the world’s richest woman, made a $100,000 donation in August, on top of her $100,000 donation in April, she listed her address as a post office box in Walmart’s hometown of Bentonville, Arkansas. Walton has little history of political giving in New York beyond donations to charter school advocacy groups and candidates. Mamdani said he opposes the expansion of charter schools.
Many of the anti-Mandani billionaires are Republicans, but one notable exception is Barry Diller, IAC chairman and longtime New York philanthropist whose donations typically lean toward Democrats. Diller has donated $500,000 to Fix the City in two donations, with the most recent donation coming in October.
Some pro-Cuomo supporters worry that donations by billionaires and family dynasties could backfire in an increasingly populist political climate. Mamdani has made the donations a point of pride for his campaign, saying spending by the wealthy is proof that his policies are returning power to everyday New Yorkers.
“They spend more money than I tax them,” Mamdani said in an interview with MSNBC on Tuesday.
