Florida Governor Ron DeSantis reportedly issued a pointed warning to former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo over the weekend after Cuomo jokingly suggested he might flee to Florida if defeated by socialist Zohran Mamdani in New York City’s upcoming mayoral election.
“Don’t New York our Florida!” DeSantis wrote in a terse post on X (formerly Twitter), responding to a report that Cuomo, who is running as an independent after losing the Democratic primary to Mamdani, quipped about a potential move south.
The remark, delivered at a Hamptons breakfast with political insiders, drew laughter — but also concern from many, including Floridians wary of importing New York’s brand of progressive politics.
Cuomo’s offhand comment came as he addressed guests at a private gathering hosted by businessman and GOP donor John Catsimatidis at 75 Main in Southampton. According to those in attendance, Cuomo said, “It’s all or nothing. We either win or even I will move to Florida. God forbid.”
Though likely meant in jest, the former governor’s remark struck a nerve as Mamdani — a self-described Democratic socialist — continues to gain momentum in the general election.
Mamdani’s policy proposals, including a government-run grocery chain that could upend New York’s food retail sector, have drawn sharp criticism from business owners and centrists alike. Catsimatidis, who owns the Gristedes and D’Agostino supermarket chains, would be among those directly affected by such measures.
Governor DeSantis, who has made defending Florida’s free-market values and low-tax environment a cornerstone of his administration, was quick to capitalize on Cuomo’s comment.
Having already predicted a wave of relocations if Mamdani wins, DeSantis said in June, “If this socialist mayor candidate wins in New York City, you’re going to see real estate values skyrocket in Palm Beach because people are going to get out of that city.”
Indeed, DeSantis has long framed Florida as a refuge from the high taxes, heavy regulation, and soft-on-crime policies that have characterized progressive strongholds like New York and California.
Cuomo’s joke, whether serious or not, played directly into that narrative — and DeSantis wasted no time drawing the contrast.
While Cuomo’s remark was likely designed to energize supporters wary of Mamdani’s far-left platform, it also served as a reminder of the deepening ideological rift within the Democratic Party — a rift that DeSantis and other conservatives have been eager to highlight.
For many moderate voters and business leaders, the rise of socialism in city politics is not a punchline but a warning sign.
As Cuomo attempts a political comeback in a city tilting leftward, and Mamdani rides the wave of grassroots energy from New York’s progressive base, eyes are increasingly turning to Florida — not just as a place of political refuge, but as a counterpoint to what many on the right see as New York’s accelerating decline.
And for DeSantis, the message remains simple: keep Florida free — and keep New York’s problems out.
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