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Zohran Mamdani
Mayor-elect of New York City From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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Zohran Kwame Mamdani[c] (born October 18, 1991) is an American politician who is the mayor-elect of New York City. A member of the Democratic Party and the Democratic Socialists of America, he is set to become New York's first Muslim and Asian American mayor. Mamdani has served as a member of the New York State Assembly for the 36th district since 2021, representing the Queens neighborhood of Astoria.
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Mamdani was born in Kampala, Uganda, to academic Mahmood Mamdani and filmmaker Mira Nair. After spending three years in Cape Town, South Africa, when Mamdani was five to seven years old, his family moved to the United States, settling in New York City. Mamdani graduated from the Bronx High School of Science before receiving a bachelor's degree with a major in Africana studies from Bowdoin College in 2014.
After working as a housing counselor and musician, Mamdani entered local New York City politics as a campaign manager for Khader El-Yateem and Ross Barkan. He was first elected to the New York State Assembly in 2020, defeating five-term incumbent Aravella Simotas in the Democratic primary. Representing Astoria, he was reelected without opposition in 2022 and 2024.
In October 2024, Mamdani announced his candidacy for mayor of New York City in the 2025 election. He campaigned on an affordability-focused platform supporting fare-free city buses, universal public child care, city-owned grocery stores, a rent freeze on rent-stabilized units, additional affordable housing units, and a $30 minimum wage by 2030. He also expressed support for LGBTQ rights, comprehensive public safety reform, and tax increases on corporations and those earning above $1 million annually. He won the Democratic primary in June 2025, defeating former governor Andrew Cuomo in an upset, and was elected mayor in the November general election.
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Early life and education
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Zohran Kwame Mamdani was born on October 18, 1991, in Kampala, Uganda, the only child of postcolonialist academic Mahmood Mamdani and filmmaker Mira Nair.[12][13] He was given his middle name, Kwame, by his father in honor of Kwame Nkrumah, the first president of Ghana.[14][15] Both his parents are of Indian descent.[16] His father is a Gujarati Muslim who was born in Mumbai and raised in Uganda.[17] His mother is a Punjabi Hindu[18][19][20] who was born in Rourkela and raised in Bhubaneswar.[21] His paternal grandparents were born in present-day Tanzania, and his father's family was part of the Indian diaspora in Southeast Africa.[17] His maternal grandfather, Amrit Lal Nair, was a former Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer,[22] and his maternal grandmother, Praveen Nair, was a social worker and founder of the Salaam Baalak Trust in India.[23]
Mamdani lived in Kampala until he was five, when his family moved to Cape Town, in South Africa's Western Cape province,[12] after his father was appointed head of African studies at the University of Cape Town.[24] He attended St. George's Grammar School in Mowbray from 1996 to 1998,[15][25] during the early post-apartheid years. He later said that the experience of living in Cape Town "taught me what inequality looks like up close ... [and] that justice has to be more than an idea; it has to be material".[26]
The family moved to the United States and settled in New York City when Mamdani was seven,[27] and he was raised in Morningside Heights.[28] He has described his upbringing as "privileged", saying, "I never had to want for something, and yet I knew that was not in any way the reality for most New Yorkers."[29] As a child, he was often present on his mother's film sets, where he was loved by members of the film crews, who variously referred to him as "Z", "Zoru", "Fadoose", and "Nonstop Mamdani".[24]
Mamdani attended the Bank Street School for Children on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, where he successfully ran as the independent candidate in a middle school mock election, adopting a platform of "equal rights, anti-war policies that proposed spending money on education rather than the military".[30] In 2003, he returned to Kampala for a year and attended school during his father's sabbatical there;[17] his paternal grandparents and aunt still lived there and helped take care of him while his father was working on the book Good Muslim, Bad Muslim.[31]
In 2010, Mamdani graduated from the Bronx High School of Science in Kingsbridge Heights,[32][33][34] where he co-founded the school's first cricket team[13] and unsuccessfully ran for student body vice president.[35] He also played soccer with the West Side Soccer League.[34] Mamdani then attended Bowdoin College in Brunswick, Maine, where he co-founded the school's chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine.[36][37] He was a regular contributor to the campus newspaper The Bowdoin Orient, covering politics, culture, and sports via his column titled Kwame's Column.[38] In January 2014, he co-authored an op-ed in the Bangor Daily News, urging Bowdoin to join the American Studies Association's boycott of Israel and criticizing the college's president, Barry Mills.[39] He graduated in 2014 with a bachelor's degree majoring in Africana studies.[36][37]
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Career
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2016–2020: Hip-hop and rap
Mamdani is a fan of hip-hop and has composed, performed, and produced rap.[40] Under the moniker Young Cardamom, he collaborated with his best friend, Ugandan rapper HAB (Abdul Bar Hussein), whose origins are in South Sudan,[41][42] as Young Cardamom & HAB. Their first song, "Kanda [Chap Chap]", was about chapati, an Indian flatbread.[43] They performed tracks from their 2016 EP Sidda Mukyaalo ("No going back to the village") at the Nyege Nyege festival.[44][45] The pair rapped in languages including Nubi, Luganda, Swahili, and English, partly to create a unique Ugandan style of rap rather than slavishly imitating American rap, and partly to convey that Ugandan residents with roots in other countries are all Ugandan. The chapati was chosen as a symbol because it originates in South Asia but has become a Ugandan staple.[42] In their music, they addressed social issues in Uganda, such as corruption and "black and brown relations", as well as colonialism.[46] Young Cardamom & HAB were nominated for "Rookie of the Year" at the inaugural Ugandan (UG) Hip Hop Awards.[47][48]
Mamdani curated and produced the soundtrack for his mother Mira Nair's 2016 film Queen of Katwe, for which he was nominated for a 2017 Guild of Music Supervisors Awards;[49][50][51] he co-wrote the song "#1 Spice" with HAB for the film.[41][52] Mamdani also appears as an extra in the film,[53] and is credited as third assistant director.[51] Nair subsequently offered him parts in the stage musical adaptation of her film Monsoon Wedding, after he took part in stage readings for the show, and her television adaptation of the Vikram Seth novel A Suitable Boy, but he declined.[54][55]
In 2017, Mamdani released the song "Salaam" under his middle name, Zohran Kwame.[56] In April 2019, under the moniker Mr. Cardamom, he released the single "Nani", an homage to his grandmother, portrayed by actress and food writer Madhur Jaffrey in the video,[57][58][59][60] which pays tribute to Jaffrey and New York's South Asian culture.[57]
Before running for office in 2020, Mamdani worked as a foreclosure prevention and housing counselor. There, he assisted lower-income immigrant homeowners in Queens with eviction notices and efforts to prevent them from being evicted from their homes. He said the experience motivated him to run for office to address the housing and affordability crisis.[61]
2015–2019: Political involvement
Mamdani entered New York City politics as a volunteer for Ali Najmi's campaign in the 2015 special election for the 23rd district of the City Council.[14] Mamdani was inspired to join Najmi's campaign after learning that he was supported by Heems, a New York rapper of Indian descent and co-founder of alternative hip-hop group Das Racist.[40][62] Specifically, Mamdani attributes his involvement in local politics to a 2015 The Village Voice article about Najmi and Heems, whom he described as one of his favorite rappers.[63][64]
In 2017, Mamdani joined the New York City chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) and worked for the campaign of New York City Council candidate Khader El-Yateem, a Palestinian Lutheran minister and democratic socialist from Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.[14] Part of Mamdani's motivation for joining the DSA was its pro-Palestine stance, which aligned with his own prior activism.[65] Mamdani served as the campaign manager for Ross Barkan's 2018 unsuccessful bid for the New York State Senate and was also a field organizer for fellow democratic socialist Tiffany Cabán's close-run but also unsuccessful 2019 campaign for Queens County district attorney.[14][66][67]
2020–present: New York State Assembly
In October 2019, Mamdani announced his campaign to represent New York's 36th State Assembly district, which encompasses Astoria and Long Island City in Queens.[68][69] He was endorsed by the DSA,[70] running on a platform of housing reform, police and prison reform, and public ownership of utilities.[68] Mamdani's June 2020 primary victory over five-term Democratic incumbent Aravella Simotas took almost a month to call,[71] and he won the general election with no Republican opposition in November.[72] Mamdani was reelected without opposition in 2022 and 2024.[73][74]
Mamdani is a member of the DSA's nine-member "State Socialists in Office" bloc in New York and a member of the Muslim Democratic Club of New York.[14][75][76] He was the keynote speaker at the 2023 DSA convention, saying, "We are special as DSA electeds not because of ourselves; we are special because of our organization".[77][78]
As of January 2025,[update] Mamdani was a member of nine Assembly committees: the Committee on Aging; the Committee on Cities; the Committee on Election Law; the Committee on Energy; the Committee on Real Property Taxation; the Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic & Asian Legislative Caucus; the Puerto Rican/Hispanic Task Force; the Asian Pacific American Task Force; and the Task Force on New Americans.[79]
As of May 2025,[update] Mamdani had been the primary sponsor of 20 bills in the Assembly—three of which became law—and the co-sponsor of 238 bills.[80] As a member of the Assembly, he helped launch a successful fare-free bus pilot program and participated in a hunger strike alongside taxi drivers.[81][82]
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Mayor of New York City
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2025 campaign
On October 23, 2024, Mamdani announced his candidacy for mayor of New York City.[83] His platform included support for free city buses and a rent freeze in rent-stabilized housing.[84][85][86] Mamdani also wants the city government to operate five grocery stores—one in each borough—to drive down grocery prices.[87] His platform included support for universal child care and the construction of 200,000 new affordable housing units.[88] He also supports public safety reform and a $30 minimum wage by 2030.[89] His platform called for corporate tax increases and for those earning above $1 million annually.[90]
For most of the primary campaign, Mamdani trailed former New York governor Andrew Cuomo in polling. He and Cuomo raised similar amounts of money, but his donor base was considerably larger than Cuomo's.[91] A poll taken shortly before the June 24, 2025, primary election showed that Mamdani had caught up to Cuomo.[92] First-choice results on election night showed Mamdani had a large lead over Cuomo,[93][94] who conceded the race that evening.[95] His polling margin was increased by ranked choice voting, particularly because he and third-favored candidate Brad Lander cross-endorsed each other by asking their voters to rank the other candidate second.[96][97][98][99] Mamdani and Michael Blake also cross-endorsed each other a few days later.[100] On June 16, The New York Times editorial board advised voters not to rank Mamdani while criticizing Cuomo.[101]
On July 1, after the New York City Board of Elections released its ranked-choice ballot tabulation, the Associated Press announced Mamdani had won the primary.[102] It was considered a major upset.[103] A July 2025 poll indicated a shift in Jewish American political attitudes, with 43% of Jewish New Yorkers and 67% of Jewish voters under 44 planning to support Mamdani—levels of support suggesting waning attachment to traditional pro-Israel politics. However, many Jewish leaders and voters remained critical of him.[104] Mamdani's campaign launch drew media attention for its use of Bollywood songs and cultural references, which aimed to engage younger and immigrant voters.[105][106]
During the primary, Mamdani's campaign was supported by the New Yorkers for Lower Costs super PAC, which spent approximately $1.3 million supporting him and opposing Cuomo before the primary and raised an additional $1 million afterward. The super PAC received $100,000 in contributions from the Unity and Justice Fund in May and June 2025. Cuomo accused Mamdani of accepting "dirty money", saying the Unity and Justice Fund was tied to the Council on American-Islamic Relations.[107]
After Mamdani won the primary, criticisms of and attacks against him used racist, xenophobic, and Islamophobic tropes, particularly references to the 9/11 attacks and terrorism.[108][109] These criticisms and attacks came from across the political spectrum, and sparked concern and debate over Islamophobia in mainstream American politics.[110][111][112][113] The success of Mamdani's campaign was attributed in part to his use of social media to reach potential voters, especially younger voters.[114][115]
In early November, President Donald Trump threatened to withdraw federal funding for New York City should Mamdani be elected mayor.[116] Mamdani was elected mayor on November 4, 2025.[117][118][119] He will be the city's youngest mayor since 1892, as well as the city's first Indian American and Muslim mayor.[120][121][122][123]
Mayor-elect and transition
On November 5, 2025, the day after the election, Mamdani announced the first members of his mayoral transition team, with Elana Leopold as executive director, and co-chairs Maria Torres-Springer, the former first deputy mayor; Lina Khan, the former chair of the Federal Trade Commission; and nonprofit executives Melanie Hartzog and Grace Bonilla.[124] On November 10, he announced his selection of former first deputy mayor Dean Fuleihan as his first deputy, and his former Assembly chief of staff and campaign manager Elle Bisgaard-Church as his chief of staff.[125]
Mamdani met with President Trump at the White House on November 21. A spokesperson said the discussion would focus on public safety, economic security, and affordability.[126][127] After the meeting, Trump praised Mamdani and said they "agree on a lot more than I would have thought", following months of mutual criticism.[128][129]
Mamdani's mayoralty will begin at midnight on January 1, 2026, with New York Attorney General Letitia James set to administer the oath of office. A public inauguration will be held later that day, where he will be ceremonially sworn in by U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders.[130]
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Political positions
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Mamdani identifies as a democratic socialist,[66][131] and is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America.[76][132] Described as a progressive and left-wing populist,[133][134] his policies have been characterized as left-wing.[135][136] His economic platform centers on equity and affordability—supporting debt relief for taxi medallion owners,[137] stronger rent control, tenant protections, and a Social Housing Development Agency to build 200,000 affordable units.[138][139] In New York City, he advocates raising the local minimum wage to $30 by 2030,[140] implementing higher taxes on corporations and high-income earners to fund free tuition at CUNY and SUNY, universal childcare, city-owned grocery stores, and free public transit, while cutting taxes for outer-borough homeowners and reforming New York's property tax system.[d]
Mamdani supported Proposal 1—a successful 2024 ballot measure that banned discrimination based on ethnicity, gender identity, disability, and reproductive rights—and backs single-payer healthcare through the New York Health Act.[146][147][148][149] He argues that "dignified work, economic stability, and well-resourced neighborhoods" prevent harm better than policing, proposing a civilian Department of Community Safety to handle mental health crises and community outreach.[150] He has voiced support for defunding the NYPD and accused the department of racism, for which he later apologized. As a mayoral candidate, he instead emphasized building a cooperative relationship with the department on violent crime prevention while reducing the involvement of police in other matters.[151][152][153]
Mamdani has condemned dictatorships in Venezuela and Cuba while criticizing US sanctions on those countries.[154] He has denounced Indian prime minister Narendra Modi as a "war criminal"[155][156][157] and remains a critic of Israel and the Gaza genocide,[158][159][160] describing its policies as apartheid[161] and supporting the movement to boycott, divest from, and sanction the country.[162] He co-sponsored the "Not on our dime!" bill to stop New York charities from funding Israeli settler violence.[163] After the October 7 attacks, Mamdani mourned all victims, condemned Hamas's attacks as war crimes,[164][161][165] and called for both sides to "lay down their arms" while advocating a permanent ceasefire,[166] the end of Israeli occupation, and ethnocratic policy in favor of "equal rights for all".[167][161][168][169] He said he would try to honor the International Criminal Court's warrants for Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Russian president Vladimir Putin if they visit New York City.[170]
Mamdani connects environmental justice to social equity.[171] He opposed expansion of the gas-fired Astoria Energy power plant,[172][173] supports the All-Electric Buildings Act and congestion pricing, and proposed a "Green Schools for a Healthier New York City" plan to retrofit schools with solar panels, create green schoolyards, and establish resilience hubs.[174][175][176] His platform includes universal pre-K, baby baskets for new families, defending Hasidic yeshivas' autonomy,[177] expanding sanctuary protections for immigrants, making New York City an LGBTQ+ sanctuary city with an Office of LGBTQIA+ Affairs, and eliminating bus fares through expanded MTA funding and free transit initiatives.[e]
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Personal life
Mamdani is a dual citizen of Uganda and the United States; he was naturalized in the latter country in 2018.[183] He is a Twelver Shia Muslim.[36][184] In 2021, Mamdani met animator and illustrator Rama Duwaji on an online dating application.[185][186] They became engaged in October 2024,[185] held a private nikah ceremony two months later in Dubai,[187] and were married in February 2025 in a civil ceremony at New York City Hall;[188] they also had a ceremony in Uganda in July 2025.[186] The couple resides in Astoria, Queens.[14][186]
Besides English, Mamdani can speak at least six other languages with varying degrees of proficiency: French, Hindi, Kiswahili, Luganda, Spanish, and Arabic.[189][190][191] He is a fan of the English football team Arsenal[192][193] and basketball team the New York Knicks, whose games he has attended as part of past campaigns,[194] and also follows cricket[195] and professional wrestling.[196] He is a shareholder of the Spanish soccer team Real Oviedo, having been one of 20,000 people to purchase shares in the club in 2012 as part of a fundraising drive to stave off bankruptcy.[197][198]
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Notes
- Elected on both Democratic Party and WFP ballot lines in New York via electoral fusion
- Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) is not a registered political party. Instead, it is a political organization for those with democratic socialist ideologies. Mamdani is a member of and is endorsed by the New York City DSA chapter.
- English pronunciation: /zəˈ(h)rɑːn ˈkwɑːmeɪ məmˈdɑːni/ ⓘ zə-(H)RAHN KWAH-may məm-DAH-nee,[1][2] also commonly /ˈzɔːrɑːn/ ZOR-ahn;[3] Hindi: ज़ोहरान क्वामे ममदानी;[4][5] Urdu: زہران کوامے ممدانی,[6][7] with the first name sometimes written زوہران[8] or ظہران,[9][10] pronounced [zoːɦˈɾaːn ˈkʋaːmeː məmˈdaːniː].[11]
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References
External links
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