Zohran Mamdani becomes New York’s first Muslim mayor, vowing to tackle living costs amid potential clashes with President Donald Trump over immigration and funding.
NEW YORK: Zohran Mamdani, the young standard-bearer of the US left, was sworn in as mayor of New York on Wednesday, beginning a term likely to pit him against President Donald Trump.
The 34-year-old Democrat took his oath of office at an abandoned subway stop just after midnight, a venue his office said reflected his commitment to working people. He is the city’s first Muslim mayor.
“Our campaign was built around listening to the people of New York, and we will govern in the same way. Tomorrow, we get to work,” Mamdani said on social media ahead of the inauguration.
His ambitious agenda includes rent freezes, universal childcare and free public buses, promises made to address the city’s soaring cost of living. Political analyst John Kane of New York University noted that after an election, “symbolism only goes so far with voters. Results begin to matter a whole lot more.”
The relationship with President Trump, a fellow New Yorker, will be a decisive factor. Trump has repeatedly criticised Mamdani, calling him a “communist lunatic” and threatening to slash federal funding for the city before the November vote.
Despite this, the pair held surprisingly cordial talks at the White House in November. Columbia University professor Lincoln Mitchell said the meeting “couldn’t have gone better from Mamdani’s perspective,” but warned the relationship could sour quickly.
A major flashpoint could be federal immigration raids, as Trump wages a nationwide crackdown. Mamdani has vowed to protect immigrant communities, while the mayor-elect has said he believes Trump is a fascist.
The private swearing-in was performed by New York Attorney General Letitia James, who successfully prosecuted Trump for fraud. A larger, ceremonial inauguration was scheduled for Thursday with speeches from left-wing allies Senator Bernie Sanders and Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
According to The New York Times, Mamdani used several Korans to be sworn in, a first for the city. The texts included two from his family and one that belonged to Puerto Rico-born Black writer Arturo Schomburg.
Mamdani will move from his rent-controlled apartment in Queens to the official mayor’s residence in Manhattan, a decision he attributed mainly to security reasons despite his campaigning on affordability.
Born in Uganda to a family of Indian origin, Mamdani moved to New York at age seven. He compensates for his relative inexperience by surrounding himself with seasoned aides from past mayoral administrations and former president Joe Biden’s government.
As a defender of Palestinian rights, he will also have to reassure the city’s Jewish community of his inclusive leadership, a task underscored when one of his hires resigned after past antisemitic tweets were revealed.
