‘Thanks for the jobs!’: Mamdani declared Florida’s Economic Developer of the Year as residents flee NYC for Sunshine State

"We wanted to thank him for the jobs, the companies, the people that they're pushing out of New York — and a lot of them are coming to Florida," Chamber CEO Mark Wilson first told Fox News.

"America is at a crossroads right now. I think everyone that's paying attention knows that our country was built on freedom and free enterprise and people having the liberty to make their dreams come true," he said. "And there's a push in our country right now to take those liberties away and to attack free enterprise. And that's never worked anywhere, and it won't work in America."

"What Mayor Mamdani is doing is dangerous for the country, right? It's bad for New Yorkers. It's bad for New York. It's very harmful for the country," Wilson continued. "We can choose free enterprise, which is what America was built on, or we can choose to destroy that, which is what the social[ist] policies do… And so, what we're hoping happens from this campaign is that we refocus America on free enterprise."

Wilson insisted that the campaign is meant to encourage the free exchange of capital rather than to tear New York down. He said he wanted every state to thrive.

"Even though Florida is winning right now, we're not looking for New York to lose," he said. "We're hoping that these other states will say ‘no’ to this move towards socialism and say ‘yes’ to the very policies that our country was founded on," he said. "This isn't about spiking a football or looking at the scoreboard about Florida versus New York. This is really about trying to save our country from crazy."

"We're in a big competition with every other state, but it's a competition for ideas. And we're trying to highlight to the country that free enterprise wins every single time. It's what's best for customers, it's what’s best for job creators. And if we focus on it in America, we can get back to that three-plus percent GDP growth, which is what our country really needs," Wilson noted.

A spokesperson shot back at the Florida-led campaign and said that things in the economy are better than ever for New Yorkers. “By any metric, New York City's economy under Mayor Mamdani is as strong as it's ever been," they said to Fox News. “We look forward to continuing to grow the economy while ensuring that working-class New Yorkers are benefiting from that growth."

New York City has experienced a significant outflow of residents to other parts of the country. Census Bureau estimates show the city lost roughly 170,000 residents through net domestic migration between 2020 and 2024, as residents moved to other states and regions. Florida has remained one of the most popular destinations for New Yorkers, driven in part by its lower taxes and cost of living.

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