Mamdani sworn in as NYC mayor, ushering in new age of anti-Zionist leadership

Taking his oath on a Quran in a historic subway station on New Years Eve, New York’s first-ever Muslim mayor says it is ‘privilege of a lifetime’ to lead America’s largest city

NEW YORK — Zohran Mamdani became mayor of New York City just after midnight Thursday, taking the oath of office at a historic decommissioned subway station in Manhattan.

Mamdani, a Democrat and an avowed anti-Zionist, was sworn in as the first Muslim leader of America’s biggest city, placing his hand on a Quran as he took his oath.

“This is truly the honor and the privilege of a lifetime,” Mamdani said in a brief speech.

The private ceremony, administered by New York Attorney General Letitia James, a political ally, took place at the old City Hall station, one of the city’s original subway stops that is known for its stunning arched ceilings.

In Mamdani’s first remarks as mayor, he said the old subway station was a “testament to the importance of public transit to the vitality, the health and the legacy of our city,” as he announced the appointment of his new Department of Transportation commissioner, Mike Flynn.

“Thank you all so much, now I will see you later,” he said with a smile before heading up a flight of stairs.

Mamdani will be sworn in again, in grander style, in a public ceremony at City Hall at 1 p.m. by US Sen. Bernie Sanders, one of the mayor’s political heroes. That will be followed by what his office is billing as a public block party on a stretch of Broadway known as the “Canyon of Heroes,” famous for its ticker-tape parades.

Mamdani now begins one of the most unrelenting jobs in American politics as one of the country’s most-watched politicians.

In addition to being the city’s first Muslim mayor, Mamdani is also its first of South Asian descent and the first to be born in Africa. At 34, Mamdani is also the city’s youngest mayor in generations.

He handily defeated Andrew Cuomo, the Democratic former governor of New York who ran as an independent, in November’s elections.

In a campaign that helped make “affordability” a buzzword across the political spectrum, the democratic socialist promised to bring transformative change with policies intended to lower the cost of living in one of the world’s most expensive cities. His platform included free child care, free buses, a rent freeze for about 1 million households, and a pilot of city-run grocery stores.

But he will also have to face other responsibilities: handling trash and snow and rats, while getting blamed for subway delays and potholes.

Mamdani was born in Kampala, Uganda, the son of filmmaker Mira Nair and Mahmood Mamdani, an academic and author. His family moved to New York City when he was seven, with Mamdani growing up in a post-9/11 city where Muslims didn’t always feel welcome. He became an American citizen in 2018.

He worked on political campaigns for Democratic candidates in the city before he sought public office himself, winning a state Assembly seat in 2020 to represent a section of Queens.

Mamdani and his wife, Rama Duwaji, will depart their one-bedroom, rent stabilized apartment in the outer-borough to take up residence in the stately mayoral residence in Manhattan.

Mamdani inherits a city on the upswing, after years of slow recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. Violent crime has dropped to pre-pandemic lows. Tourists are back. Unemployment, which soared during the pandemic years, is also back to pre-COVID levels.

Yet deep concerns remain about high prices and rising rents in the city.

He’ll also have to deal with Republican President Donald Trump.

During the mayoral race, Trump threatened to withhold federal funding from the city if Mamdani won and mused about sending National Guard troops to the city.

But Trump surprised supporters and foes alike by inviting the Democrat to the White House for what ended up being a cordial meeting in November.

“I want him to do a great job and will help him do a great job,” Trump said.

Still, tensions between the two leaders are almost certain to resurface, given their deep policy disagreements, particularly over immigration.

Mamdani also faces skepticism and opposition from some of the city’s Jewish community over his deep criticisms of Israel’s government, including charges that it is committing “genocide” in Gaza, which Israel denies.

He benefited from a wave of anger over Israel’s conduct in Gaza among some Democrats and Jewish Americans who had initially supported it but grew disillusioned. That shift manifested itself in spring anti-Israel protests at Columbia University last year that Mamdani supported and politically benefited from.

Jewish opponents of Mamdani have expressed concern about his refusal to condemn the phrase “Globalize the intifada,” a slogan of support for Palestinians that many Jews say is a call to violence against Jewish people and Israel. After his nomination, Mamdani privately told a group of business leaders that he would not use the phrase and would discourage others from using it, according to a July New York Times report.

He has said he supports the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions, or BDS, movement, which calls for the economic and cultural boycott of Israel.

The new mayor and his team have spent the weeks since his election victory preparing for the transition, surrounding Mamdani with seasoned hands who have worked inside or alongside city government.

That included persuading the city’s police commissioner, Jessica Tisch, to remain in her position — a move that helped calm fears in the business community that the administration might be planning radical changes in policing strategy.

Mamdani’s appointees have not been without controversy, however, as his choice for his administration’s director of appointments, Catherine Almonte Da Costa, resigned last month after her antisemitic comments from more than a decade ago surfaced, including one decrying “money-hungry Jews.”

Additionally, some 20 percent of Mamdani’s administrative appointees have ties to anti-Zionist US activist groups, such as Students for Justice in Palestine, the Anti-Defamation League said in a report last month.

The ADL has launched a “Mamdani Monitor” program to track the mayor-elect, leading to pushback from progressives and criticism from Mamdani himself.