From Fox News: A former top executive for liberal billionaire George Soros’ Open Society Foundations (OSF) between 2017 and 2020 is back in the spotlight amid reports highlighting his involvement with Zohran Mamdani’s New York City mayoral campaign and connecting Obama world to the campaign.
Patrick Gaspard, who has served in several high-profile political positions, including advising former President Barack Obama’s historic 2008 campaign, serving as the Democratic National Committee’s executive director, and being tapped as the Center for American Progress (CAP) president in 2021, has been informally advising Mamdani on the side and recently introduced Obama campaign architect David Axelrod to him, a recent New York Times article revealed.
A New York Times opinion piece that was published on Wednesday explained how Obama world operatives were starting to coalesce around Mamdani and have been in communication with his campaign behind the scenes. Obama reportedly called Mamdani after his Democratic primary victory in June, offering advice about the importance of governing and giving constituents optimism in dark times.
Gaspard, who was reportedly at Mamdani’s victory party in late June, has played a growing role advising Mamdani and accompanying him to meetings, the piece noted. He also introduced Axelrod to Mamdani last month when the former Obama advisor visited the campaign headquarters in Manhattan.
The New York Times writes:
In the days after it became clear Zohran Mamdani had won New York City’s June mayoral primary, much of the Democratic establishment began to panic.
Former President Barack Obama, the last Democrat to captivate the party’s base, got on the phone. In a lengthy call in June, Mr. Obama congratulated Mr. Mamdani, offered him advice about governing and discussed the importance of giving people hope in a dark time, according to people with knowledge of the conversation.
Others in Mr. Obama’s orbit have also shown a keen interest in Mr. Mamdani and his campaign. Jon Favreau, who served as Mr. Obama’s speechwriter, and Dan Pfeiffer, a former senior adviser, have been in communication with the Democratic strategist Morris Katz, among Mr. Mamdani’s closest aides.
The Times noted that while some Democrats have been hesitant to embrace Mamdani, “It seems very possible that Obamaworld views Mr. Mamdani differently: not as a threat or a liability, but as a promising figure in a Democratic Party with a pressing need for fresh blood.”
The Times also noted that while Obama became the first Black president in the United States, if elected, Mamdani will become New York City’s first Muslim mayor.
In Opinion
After Zohran Mamdani won New York City’s mayoral primary, much of the Democratic Party began to panic, Mara Gay writes. But interest from Barack Obama is the clearest sign yet that Mamdani is likely to be embraced by the Democratic mainstream.” https://t.co/S98MHQqF5I
— The New York Times (@nytimes) August 13, 2025
A former top executive at Soros’s Open Society Foundations—Patrick Gaspard, a longtime Obama insider—is now advising socialist mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani, helping to bridge “Obama world” with Mamdani’s radical campaign.
— Capital Research Center (@capitalresearch) August 14, 2025
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