Democratic New York City mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani appeared to rake in $13,000 in potentially illegal foreign donations, the New York Post reported Sunday.
At least 170 of the 54,000 contributions allegedly came from donors with addresses listed as being outside of the U.S., according to the Post. Only U.S. citizens or legal U.S. residents are permitted to donate to political campaigns and political action committees under federal, state, and local law.
In one example, Mamdani’s campaign received a $500 donation from his mother-in-law, Bariah Dardari, who resides in Dubai, according to New York City Campaign Finance Board records. The donation has since been returned by the campaign, the Post reported.
Mamdani’s campaign has returned $5,608 in donations so far, including his mother-in-law’s donation. The campaign said it intends to return any donations that were sent from outside the U.S., according to the outlet.
“We will of course return any donations that are not in compliance with CFB law,” the campaign told the Post in a Saturday statement after being presented with a breakdown of the donations.
The campaign, however, failed to return 88 of the donations suspected as being from foreigners, amounting to $7,190, according to the Post. Mamdani’s campaign received just under $4 million in private campaign contributions as of Sunday, according to the Campaign Finance Board.
Democratic New York City mayor Eric Adams, who recently dropped out of the mayoral race, accused the New York City Campaign Finance Board of showing blatant bias in favor of Mamdani.
“When a board that doesn’t reflect the diversity of New York City enforces rules selectively, it undermines democracy. My campaign was denied matching funds over baseless allegations, while Mamdani’s campaign received millions even after $13,000 in illegal foreign donations were uncovered. The bias is undeniable,” Adams said on X.
Republican mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa also sounded the alarm on the alleged foreign campaign contributions, the Post reported.
“Where there’s smoke, there’s fire, so I would be very concerned,” Silwa told the Post. “There is probably a lot more in terms of foreign money. It’s very problematic, not just for Zohran Mamdani, but anybody who has these kinds of PACs, because it’s a license to illegally funnel money. And foreign countries know you don’t have to go to war against America. All you gotta do is manipulate the election.”
Campaign finance records show the Mamdani campaign received an August 2025 donation of $250 from Ugur Macit, who appears to live in Germany. An environmental scientist named James Furlaud donated $2,500 from Australia, according to the records. Ada Diaz Ahmed, a Dubai-based investor, also donated $2,100 to the campaign Sept. 26.
Mamdani’s campaign and the Campaign Finance Board did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.
