By Christopher Drumm
Zohran Mamdani has been elected mayor of New York City. There can be no doubt about that. Shortly after the ball drops in Times Square to mark the start of 2026, the 34-year-old Queens resident will raise his hand, swear an oath and become the Gotham City’s 111th mayor.
Mamdani’s electoral victory was a decisive one, outpolling former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, his nearest competitor, by nearly 200,000 votes and 10 percentage points. It took the Associated Press and CNN less than 40 minutes to call the race. Candidly, it shouldn’t have taken that long; Mamdani crushed the field.
Equally certain as Mamdani’s victory is this: Wall Street is not happy with the result. I suppose it should come as no surprise that the leaders of the world capital of capitalism would find the election of a self-proclaimed socialist an anathema. After all, a platform of “tax the rich” lacks a certain appeal to the, well … to the rich.
And rich they and their industry are – rich and highly taxed. In fiscal year 2024-25 the financial sector generated 19.4%, or $22 billion, of New York State’s tax collections. The industry’s contribution at the municipal level was just as mighty, weighing in at $6.7 billion, 8.4% of New York City’s tax collections.
In addition to rich and highly taxed, Wall Street’s leaders are highly mobile, having been freed from the floors of the exchanges by technology. Herein lies an opportunity for the agile, an opportunity being pursued by others – a pursuit Pennsylvania, particularly Philadelphia, must join.
The Miami area boasts “Wall Street South,” while denizens of Texas are eager to show off “Y’all Street” replete with its gleaming, new Goldman Sachs’ campus to visitors. Why not “Jawn Street?”
There was a time, long ago, when Philadelphia served as our nation’s financial center. This golden age occurred sometime between the age of the dinosaurs and Frank Rizzo’s mayoralty. Eventually events of the 19th century overtook our city, allowing Manhattan to seize the crown as home to America’s largest financial market. It is a crown they have worn for well over 100 years.
It’s time to take a run at that crown. Philadelphia possesses the infrastructure and, more importantly, the intellectual horsepower by way of its unparalleled academic assets, to do so.
Lawmakers and the business communities of Texas and Florida make their states attractive to financial giants suddenly on the move. Pennsylvania must do the same. I can assure you of this: the jawn will be worth the squeeze. ••
Christopher Drumm is a Mayfair native, a former Democratic ward leader and a relentless promoter of all things Philadelphia.
