Zohran Mamdani sworn in as New York City mayor, capping historic rise

Just after midnight, Zohran Kwame Mamdani was sworn in as New York City’s first Muslim mayor in a modest ceremony held in a historic subway station under City Hall. Mamdani’s astonishing rise over the last year took him from a marginal role as a backbench New York state lawmaker to the pinnacle of power in the largest city in the U.S.

“Thank you so much to everyone for being here, Happy New Year to New Yorkers,” Mamdani said, flashing his trademark grin. “This is truly the honor and privilege of a lifetime.”

The oath was administered by New York state Attorney General Letitia James, a fellow Democrat and a close Mamdani ally. “Congratulations, Mr. Mayor,” she said, to cheers.

A much larger public ceremony will be held later on New Year’s Day on the steps of City Hall, with Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders — one of Mamdani’s political mentors — and New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez expected to take part.

An immigrant’s victory, a focus on affordability

An immigrant born in Uganda to parents with roots in India, Mamdani’s political triumph in 2025 came at a time when President Trump and his top advisors were rapidly reshaping U.S. policy to sharply limit immigration, especially for Muslims and people from African countries.

Mamdani’s critics, including Trump but also many leaders in the Democratic Party, also raised concerns about his membership in the Democratic Socialists of America as well as his frequent criticism of Israel and the war in Gaza.

Trump falsely described Mamdani as a “communist” and said his growing influence was “a disaster waiting to happen. We can’t have a communist in charge of a great, supposedly free enterprise kind of a representative city,” he said.

Those attacks didn’t slow Mamdani’s march to victory. In the general election, he defeated Andrew Cuomo, once a Democratic Party titan, by nearly ten points.

“The future is in our hands,” Mamdani said during his victory speech in November. “In this moment of political darkness, New York will be the light.”

Much of Mamdani’s campaign focused on kitchen table issues and affordability. He promised free bus service, universal child care, government-run grocery stores, and a freeze on rents for apartments that fall under the city’s authority.

While focusing on pocket book concerns, Mamdani also managed to charm many of his early opponents, building a broad coalition of supporters — many of them young — and winning endorsements from some of New York City’s most influential Jewish leaders.

In a meeting that followed his November win, even Trump promised to support Mamdani, despite his harsh rhetoric during the campaign: “I expect to be helping him, not hurting him – a big help, because I want New York City to be great,” Trump said.

Achieving Mamdani’s ambitious campaign promises won’t be easy.  Many of his proposals require corporate and personal tax hikes for the wealthy, which won’t happen without support from more centrist Democrats in Albany, the state capital. But New York Governor Kathy Hochul has already signaled support for Mamdani’s goal of free childcare.

Mamdani has also drawn praise for building a management team that includes experienced veterans — including his decision to keep NYPD commissioner Jessica Tisch in his cabinet. But there have been missteps. Last month, one of Mamdani’s top appointments withdrew after the Anti-Defamation League surfaced social media posts from more than a decade ago widely viewed as insensitive and anti-Semitic.