Gov. Kathy Hochul’s endorsement of Zohran Mamdani‘s mayoral bid didn’t seem to do much for Mamdani — and it certainly didn’t benefit her — but it sure seems to have helped Rep. Elise Stefanik. The Republican congresswoman, who is preparing to announce her own gubernatorial bid, has received millions in pledges since Sunday, according to insiders.
“We have hundreds of thousands of donations coming in and millions more pledged” for when she formally enters the race for governor, one source close to Stefanik told NYNext. “And the big donations have been from Democrats.”
Stefanik has yet to officially announce, but there is common belief in New York State politics that she will officially enter the race after the mayoral election in November.
She has been accepting donations through her Elevate PAC, which has funded her multiple congressional bids.
This embrace of Stefanik comes as recent mayoral-race polling shows Mamdani 21 points ahead of his nearest competitor, Andrew Cuomo.
Moderates in New York City are realizing they want a counter balance to him in Albany, sources said — someone who can rein in Mamdani’s most radical proposals like increasing taxes on the wealthy, which would ultimately be a state decision. The best way to do that, they believe, is to elect a Republican for the governor’s office.
Stephen Prince, CEO of TFG Asset Management and a former Democratic donor, told me that, regardless of Hochul’s reasoning behind the endorsement, it “represents the highest level of political cynicism.
“She flip-flopped on endorsing Mamdani … she has flip flopped so much through her career as governor,” said Prince, who has become a vocal Stefanik supporter over the last year.
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“Hochul isn’t going to provide a check on Mamdani … he has already flipped the power dynamic and he’s not even mayor yet.”
While Hochul had told top donors she planned to endorse Mamdani ahead of her guest essay in the New York Times Sunday, sources told me, many were surprised by just how effusive she was.
One real-estate developer said that Hochul had framed the endorsement as a political necessity — and promised she would use it as a way to get on Mamdani’s good side and encourage him to moderate his most extreme positions.
“I thought she’d endorse him but didn’t think she’d endorse his talking points and agenda,” the developer added. “She was completely milquetoast … she didn’t try to push back on anything.”
Sources note they’ve yet to hear from the governor since her announcement.
A spokesperson for Hochul did not respond to a request for comment.
While a recent Siena Poll shows Hochul with 52% to Stefanik’s 27%, donors tell me they believe that will change dramatically once the congresswoman officially enters the race.
According to one GOP pollster who spoke on background, ”No one has a bigger donor network. Supporters of all types, grassroots and also finance and real estate magnates, have been scrambling to get the cell phone of one of Elise’s senior staff. It’s a frenzy, where friend groups are organizing events or Zoom calls in the future and telling Elise that they are all in, should she decide to run.”
“Elise is a compelling candidate some New Yorkers don’t yet know,” Prince said. “Moderate Democrats and Republicans who haven’t engaged with her yet will be excited once they get to know her.”
Irit Tratt, a longtime Republican bundler and a member of the national board of the Republican Jewish Coalition, said she sees Jewish New Yorkers, in particular, “crossing over” to the GOP.
“New York is in a worse position now than when Lee Zeldin ran [for governor in 2022] and he came close [to winning].” said Tratt. She added that is already looking to help a Stefanik candidacy — in part because, “I don’t want to move to Florida.”
The irony is that Hochul made this endorsement to protect herself in the upcoming election, as she fears a primary challenge from the far-left Lt. Gov. Antonio Delgado could oust her. If the last week is any indication, she needs to fear more about the challenges coming from the right than the left.
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