Mamdani stands by DSA insider accused of stiffing landlord during $1.4M townhome makeover
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani repeatedly declined to distance himself from embattled New York City Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) co-chair Gustavo Gordillo, after being pressed on allegations that the DSA leader failed to pay thousands in rent on a Crown Heights apartment while his family spent a reported $1.4 million renovating the NYC townhouse where he lives—a contrast critics say is difficult to square with the anti-landlord, rent-abolitionist socialist housing agenda he helps champion.Mamdani said Sunday that people working for a "more affordable life" and a "fairer life" for New Yorkers "should be welcomed into this work." When asked again Monday whether Gordillo should step down and whether he condemned allegations that Gordillo lied about his employment, the mayor said he welcomed anyone committed to making New York "a city that everyone can belong to." Meanwhile, asked directly whether he condemned Gordillo’s alleged actions and lying, Mamdani ended the exchange: "Thank you very much."Gordillo, an Ivy League graduate who as a NYC-DSA co-chair met weekly with Mamdani and his campaign manager as the group coordinated fundraising, field and communications efforts, later served on Mamdani’s Economic Development & Workforce Development transition committee, according to public reporting. He is named in a pending Brooklyn Housing Court case, in which a former landlord alleges Gordillo failed to pay $5,000 in rent on a $2,500-a-month Crown Heights apartment, while his family's townhouse was undergoing its $1.4 million in renovations, according to the New York Post.Gordillo's family reportedly bought the Bed-Stuy townhouse in 2019 for $935,000, while Gordillo’s father has said it is for Gordillo and his brother to live in.SOCIALIST BIGWIG BLASTS THE WEALTHY WHILE LIVING IN $1.4M BROOKLYN BROWNSTONE WITH EYEBROW-RAISING BACKSTORYMembers of the Democratic Socialists of America gather outside of a Trump owned building during a May Day rally ...