Heard Around Town
Mamdani hits the fundraising circuit
He popped up at a Brad Lander party in Brooklyn Heights this week, and is heading to tony Old Westbury to support Claire Valdez next.
Zohran Mamdani owes Brad Lander one, after the pair teamed up against Andrew Cuomo in the 2025 Democratic mayoral primary. Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani spoke at a fundraiser for congressional candidate and ally Brad Lander Wednesday night at a brownstone in Brooklyn Heights. Lander, former city comptroller and third-place finisher in the mayoral primary, is challenging Rep. Dan Goldman from the left in the district that includes lower Manhattan and Brooklyn neighborhoods from Brooklyn Heights to Sunset Park.
“I look at Brad as someone who we can trust to not only help to ensure that we're defeating Republicans, but also that we're electing better Democrats,” the mayor told a crowded living room of Lander supporters convened by jewelry designer Alexis Bittar and Resistance Revival Chorus singers Sarah Sophie Flicker and Shruti Rya Ganguly. Goldman’s campaign declined to comment.
Actors Amber Tamblyn, Ben McKenzie, Busy Phillipps, David Cross and Oscar-winner Amy Sheridan all made appearances. Also present were writer Aminatou Sow and Assembly candidate Eli Northrup, who’s running for the seat vacated by Micah Lasher. The chorus performed “This Joy,” and Flicker noted Lander was “the only man” the all-women group has ever invited on stage.
His campaign declined to disclose how much he raised at the star-studded event ahead of the March 31 filing deadline. Last week, Lander was fundraising in Los Angeles. Already at a fundraising disadvantage to the wealthy incumbent Goldman, Lander asked his opponent this week to take a pledge against “dark money” in the race by committing to donating campaign funds to charity in proportion to the amount spent on superPAC ads. Goldman countered by demanding an end to “negative messaging” in the race and reiterating his invitation to debate Lander seven times.
Mamdani is also planning to show up at a fundraiser for Assembly Member Claire Valdez, who’s running for Congress in New York’s 7th Congressional District, on March 30 in Old Westbury, Long Island. Tickets to that event start at $1000.
After Lander’s event, the mayor evidently took a Citi Bike back to Manhattan.