A group of New York City figures tied to Mayor Zohran Mamdani is holding a fundraiser Monday night to help two Senate hopefuls, and the host committee reads as a who’s who of Mamdani’s friends in entertainment and politics.
The event is called the Ohio Texas Victory Fund’s “special reception.” It starts at 7 p.m. in downtown Manhattan, with tickets set at $500 for regular attendance and $27,000 for “champion” donors. The two candidates are James Talarico, running for the Senate seat from Texas, and Sherrod Brown, seeking the Senate seat from Ohio.
Host Committee Members
The host committee includes Alexis Bittar, Robert De Niro, Kelley Robinson, Shameek Bose, Shaifali Puri, Shruti Rya Ganguly, Adriana Trigiani, and Victor Kovner. Bittar previously called America a “s–thole” in an interview just before the 250th anniversary celebration of the US. He also helped release the “Reclaim the Flag” documentary, which lamented that the flag had become a “symbol of aggression.”
Bose co-hosted a December 2025 fundraiser for Mamdani’s mayoral transition. Shaifali Puri, wife of Daily Show comedian Aasif Mandvi, served on Mamdani’s 20-member transition committee on legal affairs. Victor Kovner wrote a column last year making the case for Mamdani with Jewish voters.
The Candidates and Their Opponents
Talarico faces Republican state Attorney General Ken Paxton in Texas. Brown’s opponent is sitting GOP Sen. John Husted in Ohio.
Republicans have tied Democratic opponents to Mamdani throughout the election cycle. Trump held a friendly meeting and press conference with Mamdani at Gracie Mansion last week.
Who Is On The List
| Name |
|---|
| Alexis Bittar |
| Robert De Niro |
| Kelley Robinson |
| Shameek Bose |
| Shaifali Puri |
| Shruti Rya Ganguly |
| Adriana Trigiani |
| Victor Kovner |
The Donation Tiers
| Tier | Amount |
|---|---|
| Regular attendance | $500 |
| Champion donor | $27,000 |
The Event Schedule
| Time | Event |
|---|---|
| 7 p.m. | Ohio Texas Victory Fund “special reception” begins in downtown Manhattan |
The fundraiser runs Monday night at 7 p.m. in downtown Manhattan. Donations can be made through the Ohio Texas Victory Fund.
The event puts Mamdani’s supporters front and center as candidates look to win Senate seats in Texas and Ohio. With Trump’s recent visit to Gracie Mansion still fresh, the fundraiser could draw attention to both races.
Where the paper stands
The paper backs neither Talarico nor Brown, and instead backs individual freedom, small business and avoiding concentrations of power, which this fundraiser does not advance. The event brings together a host committee heavy on celebrities and politicians, with De Niro and Bittar among those named, and sets ticket prices far above the reach of ordinary citizens. It is a private gathering, not a public assembly, and it raises money for candidates who must answer to their donors first, not to the people who put them there.
The paper’s north star — individual freedom, small business and no concentrations of power — is not advanced by this fundraiser. Instead, it adds another layer of influence to candidates already weighed down by campaign finance rules that favor the well-connected over the common citizen. That is not how elections should work.
Readers should watch for more such gatherings tied to office-seekers, and note how they narrow the field of who gets heard in these contests. The paper will continue to judge each candidate on their own record, issue by issue, against its fixed standard.
Source material: “Mamdani allies hosting fundraiser for Dem Senate hopefuls James Talarico, Sherrod Brown,” the New York Post.
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