Ron DeSantis knows a radical leftist when he sees one.
The Florida Governor pulled no punches with his latest assessment.
And Ron DeSantis issued one devastating warning about NYC that Zohran Mamdani will never forget.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis sounded the alarm on what he sees as New York City’s looming disaster with Democrat mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani poised to win the November 5 general election.
DeSantis appeared on Fox & Friends Wednesday morning to deliver a stark message about what Mamdani’s election could mean for an already struggling New York City.
“This guy makes de Blasio look like Ronald Reagan,” DeSantis declared, referring to former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio.¹
This morning, I joined Fox and Friends on Fox News. pic.twitter.com/DSRVMylhoN
— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) October 22, 2025
Mamdani, a 33-year-old state assemblyman from Queens who identifies as a democratic socialist, won the Democrat nomination earlier this year after a stunning upset victory over former Governor Andrew Cuomo in the June primary.
He’s now facing off against Republican Curtis Sliwa and independent candidate Andrew Cuomo in the general election.
DeSantis predicts massive NYC exodus to Florida
DeSantis argued that Mamdani’s far-left policy positions could drive even more New York residents and businesses to flee to the Sunshine State.
The numbers already tell a compelling story about New Yorkers voting with their feet.
A recent study from the nonpartisan Citizens Budget Commission found that between 2018 and 2022 alone, more than 150,000 New Yorkers moved to Florida.²
That’s three times the number who moved in the opposite direction during the same period.
“It’ll probably cause Palm Beach to go up, for sure,” DeSantis said about the anticipated New York exodus under a Mamdani administration.³
Between 2017 and 2022, approximately 30,000 New Yorkers relocated specifically to Florida’s Palm Beach and Miami-Dade counties, bringing with them a total income estimated at $9.2 billion.⁴
Because when cities like New York elect leftist jabronis like Mamdani it affects my state. https://t.co/2Okx2rxaNA pic.twitter.com/UPfneyP17w
— Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantis) October 27, 2025
DeSantis has built Florida into an economic powerhouse by pursuing exactly the opposite policies that Mamdani champions for New York.
While Mamdani campaigns on reducing police funding, increasing taxes on wealthy individuals and corporations, Florida enacted the strongest pro-law enforcement legislation in the nation and maintained low taxes.
The results speak for themselves through Florida’s sustained population and economic growth.
Mamdani’s radical positions alarm conservatives nationwide
Mamdani has faced intense scrutiny for his controversial positions and associations.
The assemblyman recently drew fire for posing for a photo with a Brooklyn imam who once served as a character witness for one of the masterminds behind the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.⁵
“We’re not even 25 years removed from September 11, and it was universal in that city and around the country, you know, ‘never again.’ We were never [going to] go down this road,” DeSantis said. “Then you got a guy who is sympathetic with communism, Islamism, and he’s [going to] get elected mayor in this city. I think, quite frankly, it’s a disgrace.”⁶
Three times on MSNBC, Mamdani was asked to condemn the phrase, "Globalize the infitada," and he did not. His response was, "That is not language I use." Now, he says he doesn't care. Mamdani is a jihadist and a communist and totally wants to promote Islam. pic.twitter.com/83dFo35rtK
— Doreen Linder (@DorLinder) October 16, 2025
DeSantis also questioned Mamdani’s leadership given his history of anti-police rhetoric.
The assemblyman previously called to “defund this rogue agency” when referring to the NYPD in a 2020 social media post.⁷
He later described the department as “racist, anti-queer & a major threat to public safety.”⁸
“When you’re somebody that wants to disband the NYPD, those rank-and-file officers, those are blue-collar, hardworking people,” DeSantis argued. “They are not [going to] want to work for a guy like this.”⁹
When Mamdani takes down the Columbus statue in Manhattan, we will be happy to display it in Florida. pic.twitter.com/uSEOrTjs2b
— Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantis) October 26, 2025
President Donald Trump has repeatedly labeled Mamdani a “communist” during the campaign.
Mamdani identifies as a democratic socialist and is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, which has taken increasingly radical positions on issues ranging from Israel to capitalism.
Mamdani’s socialist wish list for New York City
Mamdani wants free buses for everyone. The city government running grocery stores. A rent freeze. And a $30 minimum wage by 2030.¹⁰
Wait, it gets better.
The assemblyman thinks the city should operate five grocery stores to “drive down grocery prices” and provide free child care for every kid from 6 weeks old until they hit kindergarten.¹¹
Who pays for all this? Corporations and anyone making over a million dollars a year, that’s who.
His housing policy document explicitly calls for shifting the city’s tax burden onto “richer and whiter neighborhoods,” a position he has defended in multiple interviews.¹²
Mamdani is also a vocal supporter of the anti-Israel BDS movement and has promised that if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited New York City, he would honor a warrant from the International Criminal Court and have Netanyahu arrested for war crimes.¹³
The assemblyman refuses to recognize Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state despite repeated questioning on the issue.
Even some prominent Democrats have expressed concern about Mamdani’s candidacy.
U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer was slow to endorse him, and some suburban New York Democrats have publicly stated they won’t back his campaign.¹⁴
DeSantis concluded his warning by predicting chaos under a Mamdani administration.
“You’re [going to] see a lot of turmoil, and I think that it will show that the city will further go down,” he stated.¹⁵
New York City voters face a clear choice on November 5 between Mamdani’s radical socialist agenda and candidates who support traditional law-and-order policies.
The guy who wants to “globalize the intifada” and campaigns with an Islamist cleric with ties to the bombing of the World Trade Center says the real problem is “Islamophobia.” https://t.co/oXSUHNfnYZ
— Ron DeSantis (@RonDeSantis) October 24, 2025
DeSantis made it clear he believes Mamdani’s election would accelerate the exodus of productive citizens and businesses to states like Florida that respect law enforcement, keep taxes low, and reject the failed progressive policies that have plagued major cities for years.
¹ Madison Colombo, “DeSantis predicts NYC ‘turmoil’ under Mamdani,” Fox News, October 22, 2025.
² Ibid.
³ Ibid.
⁴ “New Yorkers Take Billions in Income to Florida as Migration Patterns Shift,” GlobeSt, May 9, 2025.
⁵ Colombo, Fox News.
⁶ Ibid.
⁷ “Zohran Mamdani’s been called a communist who’ll defund the police,” NBC New York, September 21, 2025.
⁸ Ibid.
⁹ Colombo, Fox News.
¹⁰ “Zohran Mamdani,” Wikipedia, accessed October 27, 2025.
¹¹ “Zohran Mamdani’s policies and views on housing, child care in New York,” The 19th News, June 25, 2025.
¹² “Mamdani’s failure to walk back these positions could cause reckoning in Democratic Party,” Fox News, July 19, 2025.
¹³ “What NYC mayoral frontrunner Zohran Mamdani has said about Jews and Israel,” Times of Israel, July 2, 2025.
¹⁴ “Zohran Mamdani belongs to the Democratic Socialists of America,” Jewish Telegraphic Agency, July 3, 2025.
¹⁵ Colombo, Fox News.
