Cuban-American entrepreneur challenges Mamdani for NYC mayor

Joseph Hernandez, a 52 -year -old businessman originally from Cuba, was excited to enter the New York City mayor’s race because of his contempt for the left policies that Zahran Mamdani defended.

“I am the absolute polarity against Zahran Mamdani and what he represents,” Hernandez told Fox News Digital. “I think hard work, education and gravel are what makes you successful in this country.”

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Hernandez, a businessman in Manhattan, leads the Blue Water Venture Partners, an investment company in the field of health care and technology. He has also established more than ten health care and pharmaceutical care companies throughout his career, according to his website.

“I don’t really need to do this in my career or my life, but I am really interested in the path of this great city,” he told Fox News Digital.

Hernandez said that he fired his independent mayor a little more than a month ago, and since then, he raised about 300,000 dollars.

“We think we have a lot of support, and we are still asking people to support us because we have a big battle,” he said. “This is a large political machine that fights us.”

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If elected, he has three main priorities: safety and ability to withstand costs and technology. It hopes to enhance public safety by employing 10,000 additional police officers, improving city services by using artificial intelligence and converting vacant office spaces into affordable housing.

“The city is not safe,” Hernandez told Fox News Digital. “You cannot ride the metro at night. Women are being attacked almost on a night. People are subject to theft here. There is no law and order – there is no respect for the law.”

Hernandez said he was enthusiastic to enter the New York City mayor’s race because of his contempt for the left policies that Zahran Mamdani defended. (Deirdre Heaven/Fox News Digital)

At the age of seven, Hernandez came to the United States with his family to flee Communist rule Phil Castro.

“My father was a political prisoner in Cuba,” he said. “… we have come to this country without anything … this is a wonderful society, and we let it slide.”

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Hernandez has acknowledged that concerns about the division of moderate and conservative votes are understood. However, he believes that the real issue is the way in which New York City runs its elections.

The sun sets on the horizon of Manhattan and the Empire State building in New York City on November 15, 2024, and was seen from Jersey City, New Jersey. (Gary Hershorn/Getty Emp)

“I filed a lawsuit against the city two weeks ago, and it really requires that they re -vote the option in the general elections,” he said.

Democratic candidate, mayor of Zahran Mamdani, maintains great progress in the New York City mayor’s race, according to a recent survey by registered voters.

Mamdani is voting by 44 %, and former state governor Andrew Como, who runs as an independent, is 25 %. Republican Cortis Celoa is 12 %, and the current mayor Eric Adams is 7 %.

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The Zohran Mamdani campaign immediately did not respond to the Fox News Digital request for comment.