An investigation by the New York Post has revealed that the campaign of Democratic socialist and mayoral frontrunner Zohran Mamdani accepted nearly $13,000 in potentially illegal foreign donations, while its legal fundraising network includes donors with links to the Chinese Communist Party and organizations tied to Islamist terrorist groups.
The campaign quietly took in contributions from at least 170 donors with addresses outside the United States among its nearly 54,000 contributions, according to an examination of NYC Campaign Finance Board records. Federal, state, and city law strictly prohibit political contributions from anyone who is not a U.S. citizen or permanent legal resident, with violators facing potential hefty fines and imprisonment.
Unreturned Foreign Funds
While the Mamdani campaign has returned $5,608 in foreign donations including a $500 contribution from his mother-in-law, Dr. Bariah Dardari, a pediatrician in Dubai, records show it has failed to return 88 other foreign donations worth a total of $7,190.
When presented with a detailed breakdown of these unreturned donations, the campaign issued a statement Saturday saying, “we will of course return any donations that are not in compliance with CFB law.” However, a campaign spokesperson declined to explain why the funds remained in their war chest. Mamdani’s campaign has raised $4 million in private donations and received $12.7 million in public matching funds, leaving it with nearly $6.1 million on hand less than a month before the election.
The foreign donations, which began increasing in June ahead of Mamdani’s upset primary victory, came from a global pool of supporters including tech professionals, doctors, professors, students, and retired teachers. Donations ranged from as little as $1 to the maximum $2,100.
Notable foreign donors include:
- James Furlaud, an environmental scientist at Australia’s University of Tasmania, who donated $2,100.
- Ada Diaz Ahmed, a Dubai-based investor, who contributed $2,100.
- Jun-Dai Bates Kobashigawa, a software developer in Montreal, Canada, who gave $250.
- Ugur Macit, a software engineer in Germany, who donated $250.
- Ahmed Enbya, a physician in Calgary, Canada, who contributed $100.
One permitted donation came from Nupur Amin Marquardt, a U.S. citizen working in Germany, who told The Post she supported Mamdani because “It’s the only campaign I’ve seen that’s not trying to win by convincing a group of people to hate another group of people.”
City campaign filings reveal that the majority of contributions to the socialist mayoral candidate’s campaign have come from outside New York City. Over the past several weeks, the frontrunner has raised a total of $1.05 million, more than twice the $507,000 reported by Andrew Cuomo.
Donations From Controversial Elements
The investigation also uncovered that Mamdani’s legal donations include contributions from individuals and groups with controversial backgrounds:
Relatives of China-based billionaire Neville Roy Singham, who has funded radical anti-Israel and Marxist groups, have contributed thousands to Mamdani. His niece, Alicia Goodwin, is a donor and founded “Jews for Zohran.”
Omer Hasan and Mohammad Javed, who each donated $250,000 to a Mamdani-supporting PAC, made their wealth as executives at tech firm AppLovin. Short-selling firm Culper Research has raised national security concerns about the company, noting that Chinese national Hao Tang controls nearly 10% of it.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), via its “Unity & Justice Fund,” directed $100,000 to Mamdani’s campaign. CAIR was named an unindicted co-conspirator in the 2007 Holy Land Foundation terrorism financing trial, where five leaders were convicted of funneling over $12 million to Hamas.
Five staffers of the Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) contributed $1,300 to the campaign. ICNA, the North American branch of Jamaat-e-Islami, is banned in India and Russia as a terrorist organization. Its former New York head, Ashrafuzzaman Khan, was sentenced to death in absentia for his role in the murder of 18 Bangladeshi intellectuals.
Mamdani’s campaign has raised $4 million in private donations and received $12.7 million in public matching funds, with $6.1 million still on hand less than a month before the election. Most contributions have come from outside New York City.
The city’s Campaign Finance Board declined to comment, noting it is auditing all campaigns citywide.
Mamdani, who rapped “My love to the Holy Land Five/You better look ’em up” in a 2017 song, has been vocal about his socialist policies and criticism of Israel. The findings highlight concerns about the sources of his campaign funding, both legal and illegal, as the election approaches.
(Source: NY Post)
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