In a twist, billionaire Elon Musk has complimented NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani. This is despite the fact that Mamdani is a self-described democratic socialist whose campaign has centered on affordability and has called for billionaires to pay their fair share in taxes. On the flipside, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX is slated to become a trillionaire, threatening shareholders of Tesla to approve the payout that would make the world’s richest man even richer or be faced with retaliation. The former ally to Donald Trump, though their relationship is better than it was in the summer, is not exactly someone Mamdani would expect to be in his corner.
Mamdani has been asked whether trillionaires like Musk should exist
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Elon Musk said on Sunday, October 26, that “Zohran is the future of the Democratic Party.” While it’s not exactly an endorsement, it looks like even Musk is impressed with Zohran’s rising popularity among the Democratic base.
The post comes paired with a video of Governor Kathy Hochul of New York endorsing and then embracing Mamdani at the end of a rally.
“This is about this November’s election,” she said to the crowd. “But take that energy, that passion, and take it into 2026 so that we can take back the House of Representatives, take the Senate, and take back our country. With your help, we will. Elect Zohran and we take back America.”
In September, Mamdani was pressed by CNN anchor Abby Phillip to comment on Musk’s $1 trillion pay package. “Just this week, Tesla offered a pay package to Elon Musk that would potentially make him a trillionaire,” she asked. “Do you think trillionaires should exist?”
The 33-year-old mayoral hopeful dodged the question by framing it differently. “I think the better question is whether working people should exist,” he responded.
As of October 27, multiple polls per The New York Times have Mamdani winning the mayoral race for New York City handedly by 10 to 24 points over Andrew Cuomo, Curtis Sliwa, and Eric Adams.
