MGM Director Diller Supporting Cuomo for NYC Mayor

Posted on: March 10, 2025, 01:21h. 

Last updated on: March 10, 2025, 01:39h.

Todd Shriber @etfgodfather Read More
Expertise: Financial, Gaming Business, Mergers and Acquisitions.
  • MGM board member wants former governor to be next mayor of NYC
  • Endorsement stems from Cuomo’s assistance on Little Island project

MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM) Director Barry Diller has reportedly endorsed former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) in his run for mayor of New York City.

IAC MGM
IAC Chairman Barry Diller at a movie premier in 2019. The MGM board member is supporting Andrew Cuomo for New York mayor. (Image: Monica Schipper/Getty Images)

At a recent IAC/InterActiveCorp (NASDAQ: IAC) staff meeting, Diller is said to have spoken glowingly about Cuomo, mentioning the Little Island project. The meeting was an off-the-record event, but Semafor obtained a recording.

I owe him gratitude for that (Little Island), so I am supporting him,” Diller reportedly said at the meeting.

Little Island was once no more than a dilapidated pier along the Hudson River, but Diller funded its enhancement, turning it into fresh green space within the Hudson River Park complex. It opened in May 2021 and Cuomo, who was governor at the time, was instrumental in helping the project avoid New York’s notoriously sluggish bureaucratic process.

Potential Gaming Angles

Diller’s IAC is the largest MGM investor, controlling 22% of the casino operator’s shares outstanding. On the media conglomerate’s fourth-quarter earnings conference call last month, Diller said it’s possible IAC could increase its stake in the gaming company, calling it a “forever asset.”

MGM is bidding for one of three downstate gaming licenses New York regulators have yet to award and its Empire City Casino in Yonkers is widely viewed as one of the leading contenders to procure one of those permits.

As governor, Cuomo was reluctant to speed up the push for more gaming venues in the New York City area, but it was under his leadership that the state embraced mobile sports betting. Today, New York is the largest market in the country for that form of wagering.

It appears as though Diller didn’t mention MGM’s New York ambitions at the IAC meeting, nor is it clear what Cuomo’s view on gaming venues will be should he be elected mayor. What’s not up for debate is the fact that since MGM purchased Empire City in 2019, the slots-only racino has generated $5 billion in receipts for state coffers.

Diller Rarely Shy About Politics

Diller, a major donor to the Democrat party and its candidates, is outspoken when it comes to politics. Last year, he chastised The Washington Post for declining to endorse a candidate in the presidential election.

Before that, he was among a group of Democratic donors who said should then Vice President Kamala Harris win the presidential race, she should fire Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chairwoman Lina Khan. At the time, the FTC was investigating MGM related to a 2023 cybersecurity breach, but Diller’s reservations about Khan stemmed from the perception that the FTC had become too heavy-handed and unfriendly to business under her leadership. The commission has since dropped the MGM inquiry.

The recording obtained by Semafor  indicates Diller isn’t pleased with the current state of the party and believes things “have to get worse before they get better.”