Will Mandani cause a stampede of wealthy households in New York?

By: Beatrice E. Rangel - 12/11/2025

Zohran Mandani's electoral victory, while not surprising anyone, instilled a kind of panic about the fate of the world's leading financial center, given what many believe will be a period of drift toward socialism. And particularly in conservative gossip circles, a stampede of high-income families (read: millionaires and trillionaires) to other parts of the United States is being predicted. Unfortunately, these predictions don't seem to be supported by statistics. Because the numbers tell us that the only period with a net reduction in households earning one million dollars or more was from 2020 to 2022 as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic. Once this calamity was overcome and economic equilibrium was restored, New York City resumed growth in terms of families with incomes equal to or greater than one million dollars. In fact, according to a study by the Fiscal Policy Institute, New York State lost 2,400 millionaire households during 2020-22, but gained 17,500 millionaire households during the same period, suggesting that the wealthiest households were not fleeing in net numbers. Furthermore, wealthy New York families appear to be resilient to economic catastrophe. Between 2008 and 2016, the number of New York State residents who reported gross incomes of $1 million to the tax authorities increased by approximately 28%. And these were the years in which the US GDP fell by $1.5 trillion as a consequence of the mortgage crisis, which wiped out between $8 trillion and $10 trillion in income and savings for the American population.

Therefore, the predicted exodus of Mandani is not expected to occur. But his policies will certainly have a strong impact on the city's dynamics. The first impact is stylistic. Mandani is a millennial. And his generation isn't a fanatic of courtesy as older generations understand it. For them, courtesy is digital. Texts should be clean; greetings short; and content direct. In physical interactions, millennials believe that clear, transparent, and direct language should be used, and that the dignity of a human being should never be ignored when writing or speaking. But when it comes to confrontations, they believe that street style is appropriate. No embellishments or grand oratorical constructions. Confrontations must be direct, sharp, and effective. And that was the style in which he wrapped his message accepting his electoral victory. He addressed the person he identified as his rival—the President of the United States—directly and informed him that the days of Washington's intervention in the city were over. This is how she'll approach the changes she intends to make in New York City's mayor's office, whose staff has grown chaotically into a kind of thousand-headed Hydra, constantly attacking each other and slow to respond to citizens' needs and service requests. I highly doubt she'll be able to fulfill her promise of free bus service. Nor do I believe she'll freeze all rents in New York City, but I am certain she'll force landlords to comply with minimum maintenance and safety standards, which most currently disregard by paying illegal bribes to the officials who are supposed to be regulating them.

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