Democratic New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani has accused donors backing his opponent, Andrew Cuomo, of “blatant Islamophobia” after an unreleased Super PAC mailer from “Fix the City” altered his photo to give him a darker, thicker beard. 

Mamdani shared the modified photo alongside the original, revealing edits that slightly lightened his skin and made his beard appear fuller and longer.

The draft mailer, aimed at Jewish voters, accused Mamdani — who has called Israel’s war on Gaza a genocide — of rejecting Israel, Jewish rights and the police. 

Though never officially distributed, the mailer was leaked on social media by a reporter for The Forward. Fix the City has since said the draft was submitted by a vendor, rejected upon review, and posted online without their consent.

If elected, Mamdani, 33, would become New York City’s youngest mayor in over a century — and its first Muslim mayor. He must first win the Democratic primary on June 24, followed by the general election in November.