Mamdani Referred to DOJ For Criminal Charges Over Alleged Foreign Donations

New York City mayoral frontrunner Zohran Mamdani is facing two criminal referrals alleging he accepted illegal campaign contributions from foreign donors. The complaints were filed Tuesday by the Coolidge Reagan Foundation with the Department of Justice and Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.

The referrals accuse Mamdani of violating both the Federal Election Campaign Act and the New York Election Code, following a report that his campaign collected nearly $13,000 from over 170 foreign donors, including a contribution from his mother-in-law in Dubai.

Dan Backer, president of the watchdog group, described the contributions as a “sustained pattern” of illegal foreign donations, arguing that the campaign was aware of the issue but failed to take meaningful action.

The donations reportedly came from countries including Australia, Turkey, France, Canada, and Germany, prompting the foundation to call for investigation and possible prosecution. Under federal law, accepting contributions from foreign nationals in any U.S. election is prohibited and can carry fines or imprisonment.

While Mamdani’s campaign has refunded some foreign contributions, at least 88 donations totaling $7,190 remain unreturned. The campaign has raised roughly $4 million in private funds and received $12.7 million in public matching funds, with about $6.1 million on hand ahead of Election Day.

Campaign spokesperson Dora Pekec clarified that some donors may be U.S. citizens living abroad and emphasized the campaign’s compliance process to ensure only eligible contributions are accepted. Any impermissible donations will be refunded promptly.

Despite the controversy, Mamdani remains polling ahead of former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and GOP candidate Curtis Sliwa. The race has drawn additional scrutiny due to his past associations, with critics accusing him of ties to controversial figures.