NEW YORK CITY — A new survey suggests that nearly 800,000 New Yorkers — about 9% of the city’s population — say they would “definitely” leave if progressive candidate Zohran Mamdani were elected mayor.
The poll, conducted by JL Partners and reported by the Daily Mail, found that another 25% of respondents said they would “consider” leaving the city under Mamdani’s leadership. New York City currently has a population of roughly 8.5 million residents.
Mamdani, a Democratic Socialist and state assemblyman from Queens, has been outspoken about his economic agenda, which includes raising taxes on corporations and high-income earners to fund social programs.
“What I’ve proposed is that we raise $10 billion to pay for our entire economic agenda,” Mamdani said in a previous interview on The Breakfast Club. “We will do so in two key ways — the first is to match the state’s top corporate tax rate to that of New Jersey. We are at 7.25%. They’re at 11.5%.”
He added that the proposed tax would apply to all corporations doing business in New York, regardless of where they are headquartered.
“The beauty of it is that it doesn’t just apply to corporations headquartered in New York City,” Mamdani said. “Wherever you are headquartered, as long as you do business in the state of New York, you are taxable for that corporate tax.”
Mamdani has downplayed concerns about a potential exodus of residents or businesses, arguing that his tax plan would ensure fairness and generate needed revenue even if some companies relocate.
The survey results come as economic concerns and affordability continue to dominate the early stages of New York’s 2025 mayoral race.
