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Billionaire Bill Ackman ate humble pie as he congratulated New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani after his $2 million effort to defeat the leftist failed. Ackman, the CEO of New York City hedge fund Pershing Square, has been an outspoken critic of Mamdani, regularly slamming him for his anti-Israel views in massive rants on social media. The business tycoon even donated over $2 million to various anti-Mamdani groups throughout the election cycle, public records show. However, shortly after the Democratic Socialist catapulted to victory Tuesday night, Ackman modestly congratulated him on the win. '@ZohranKMamdani, congrats on the win. Now you have a big responsibility. If I can help NYC, just let me know what I can do,' Ackman said on X. Just hours before, Ackman made several posts with multiple paragraphs trying to convince voters to support former governor Andrew Cuomo. He also shared posts highlighting Mamdani's previous comments on defunding the NYPD and pro-Palestine remarks. Ackman has been a staunch advocate for Jewish Americans since the October 7, 2023 Hamas terror attack in Israel that killed more than 1,200. A recent Daily Mail poll found that even Mamdani's own supporters think he will make antisemitism in New York worse, rather than better. Mamdani, who is Muslim, has been one of the Democrat party's staunchest critics of Israel. He has even vowed to arrest Benjamin Netanyahu if the Israeli Prime Minister visits New York while he is mayor. That has spooked many Jewish people still distraught from Hamas's horrific October 2023 attack, with NYC home to one of the world's largest Jewish communities. Mamdani once joked that Ackman, who is a MAGA supporter, spent more money trying to defeat him then the mayor-elect would even tax him. 'He’s spending more money against me than I would even tax him. Every day it’s like a million dollars, a million dollars. I don’t even want that much,' he said on the Flagrant podcast last month. Ackman further explained his congratulatory post Wednesday afternoon insisting that he wishes to work with the future mayor because he cares about NYC. 'Some have been surprised by my conciliatory post to Mamdani. Mamdani won a decisive election. He is going to be our mayor for the next four years. I care enormously about New York City which has been very good to me and my family since we emigrated to NYC in the 1890s,' he said. 'While I did not support Mamdani for mayor and have concerns about the unintended and negative consequences of his policies, I want to do everything I can to help NYC regardless of who are mayor is.' Mamdani has promised several things, including freezing rent, free bus fares and tax hikes on the rich, which has some New Yorkers looking to flee the state. Before election day, a Daily Mail poll found that at least 765,000 New Yorkers would 'definitely' leave the city, and a whopping 2.12 million residents would 'consider' moving if Mamdani won. His win, which saw him take over 50 percent of the vote, means he will become the city's first Muslim mayor. During his acceptance speech, he told supporters: 'I am Muslim. I am a democratic socialist. And most damning of all, I refuse to apologize for any of this.' The 34-year-old directly addressed the president, saying: 'Donald Trump, since I know you're watching, I have four words for you: turn the volume up!' Relatively unknown as a state assemblymember when the race for City Hall started, he gained momentum by running a campaign focused on affordability. His campaign pushed populist ideas like free public buses, rent freezes for rent-stabilized apartments, and grocery stores that would be owned by the city. Trump previously branded Mamdani a 'communist' and threatened to cut off federal funding to the city if he were to win the race. 'If Communist Candidate Zohran Mamdani wins the Election for Mayor of New York City, it is highly unlikely that I will be contributing Federal Funds, other than the very minimum as required, to my beloved first home, because of the fact that, as a Communist, this once great City has ZERO chance of success, or even survival!' Trump said a New York under Mamdani would be a 'complete and total economic and social disaster,' claiming that the socialist's principles 'have been tested for over a thousand years and they have never once been successful.
