A PAC supporting the independent campaign of Andrew M. Cuomo for mayor urged donors on Wednesday to keep the money flowing despite new polling suggesting that Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic Party candidate, is still the front-runner.
“This election is very winnable for Andrew,” three investors who run the PAC wrote in a Wednesday email to donors acquired by The New York Times.
The men — Ricky Sandler, Richard Mack and Marty Burger — wrote that they planned to allocate the remaining balance in the super PAC toward get-out-the-vote efforts among “older voters” in the Bronx and Staten Island.
“And we are coming back to you for one more ask,” they wrote. “We are within striking distance. Voter turnout is the answer. We need your help to close the gap!”
The PAC, Put NYC First, claims to have raised more than $7 million, much of which it has funneled to a super PAC called For Our City. In turn, For Our City has run ads highlighting Mr. Mamdani’s former support for defunding the police and his recent appearance with a polemical imam.
A spokesman for Put NYC First did not respond to a request for comment.
Polling in recent days indicates that Mr. Mamdani, a 34-year-old democratic socialist assemblyman from Queens, retains a double-digit lead over the former governor. But Mr. Cuomo’s camp has been buoyed by reports of robust early voting turnout among older voters, who tend to support the 67-year-old Mr. Cuomo more than younger New Yorkers do.
In their email, Mr. Burger, Mr. Mack and Mr. Sandler argued that the public polling was based on poor modeling. “We don’t believe the polls have been a good indicator of what will happen in this election and the early voting data is confirming that view,” they wrote.
Manhattan’s business leaders have been struggling with the notion of a democratic socialist becoming mayor of a city widely regarded as the country’s capital of capitalism. As Mr. Mamdani climbed in the polls, many business leaders nevertheless met with him in hopes of creating a relationship with the man who might become mayor. Others, though, remain alarmed by Mr. Mamdani’s inexperience and anti-Israel views.
The email was sent the same day former Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg donated $1.5 million to a separate pro-Cuomo vehicle.
Dana Rubinstein covers New York City politics and government for The Times.
Lauren Hirsch is a Times reporter who covers deals and dealmakers in Wall Street and Washington.
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