(The Center Square) — A Pennsylvania business group is hoping to lure New York City employers concerned about democratic socialist candidate Zohran Mamdani’s upset win in Tuesday’s mayoral primary.
In a video posted on social media, Pennsylvania Chamber of Business and Industry President and CEO Luke Bernstein directs big Apple companies to uproot their operations and move to the Keystone State following the election results, touting its “pro-business” policies.
“We just heard that you might have a new mayor who happens to be a socialist,” Bernstein said in the 60-second spot. “Meanwhile, here in Pennsylvania, we’ve been doing something pretty radical, too — lowering taxes, streamlining our permitting, and making affordable, clean energy accessible to our businesses.”
He highlighted Pennsylvania’s pro-business reforms, such as changes to the state’s tax code, regulatory processes, and energy policy, suggesting that New York City businesses consider the state as a more stable, cost-effective alternative.
“While your state was banning gas stoves, our state was passing meaningful, bipartisan reforms to help businesses grow,” Berstein says. “So if you’re wondering what it’s like to do business in a state that actually wants you here, give us a call.”
Mamdani, a state assemblyman from Queens, pulled off a stunning upset Tuesday over former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the crowded Democratic primary. He must still face a final ranked-choice tabulation next week, but Cuomo has already conceded the race.
Mamdani will face incumbent New York City Mayor Eric Adams, who is running as an independent, and Republican Curtis Sliwa, in the Nov. 4 general election. Cuomo, who has also qualified for the independent line in the general election, could still be on the ballot.
But Mamdani’s rise has sent shockwaves through New York’s political establishment and drawn national attention from Republicans who have criticized the city’s dramatic shift to the left.
He has vowed, if elected, to eliminate fares to ride New York City’s public bus system, make the City University of New York “tuition-free” and freeze rents in municipal housing. He has also called for raising New York City’s minimum wage to $30 an hour by 2030.
That’s drawn scrutiny from NYC business groups, some of whom have publicly suggested that Mamdani’s proposals will lead to an exodus from the city.
Ahead of the primary, billionaire John Catsimatidis threatened to close his Manhattan-based grocery chain Gristedes if Mamdani wins. He cited Mamdani’s plan to create a chain of city-owned, nonprofit grocery stores that would be funded in part by raising taxes on corporations and high-income individuals.
“We can’t compete with Mamdani opening city-run supermarkets for free,” Catsimatidis told the New York Post. “We’d probably move our corporate headquarters to New Jersey.”
