By Amanda Terkel and Allan Smith In his first speech as the next mayor of New York, Zohran Mamdani made clear he and his city are coming for President Donald Trump. "If anyone can show a nation betrayed by Donald Trump how to defeat him, it is the city that gave rise to him," Mamdani said at his victory speech in Brooklyn Tuesday night. "And if there's any way to terrify a despot, it is by dismantling the very conditions that allowed him to accumulate power." "So Donald Trump," he added, "since I know you're watching — I have four words for you: Turn the volume up." The crowd responded with the raucous cheers that Mamdani no doubt hoped Trump would hear. --- 📝 AI Summary: Newly elected New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani vowed to challenge President Trump, asserting that New York can show the nation how to defeat him and urging Trump to 'turn the volume up' on his actions.
Zohran Mamdani
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 has served as a member of the New York State Assembly from the 36th district since 2021, representing the Queens neighborhood of Astoria.
Mamdani was born in Kampala, Uganda to academic Mahmood Mamdani and filmmaker Mira Nair. Mamdani immigrated to Cape Town, South Africa when he was five years old and then to the United States when he was seven, settling in New York City.[10] Mamdani graduated from the Bronx High School of Science and received a bachelor's degree with a major in Africana studies from Bowdoin College in Maine 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. 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 and won the Democratic primary in an upset victory over Andrew Cuomo, before again winning in the general election against Cuomo and Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa.[11][12][13] Mamdani campaigned on an affordability-focused platform in support of fare-free city buses, public child care, city-owned grocery stores, LGBTQ rights, a rent freeze on rent-stabilized units, additional affordable housing units, comprehensive public safety reform, and a $30 minimum wage by 2030. Mamdani also supports tax increases on corporations and those earning above $1 million annually. Mamdani is the first Indian American,[14][15][16] first Muslim,[17][16] second democratic socialist after David Dinkins,[18] and first Millennial mayor-elect of New York City.[19] He is expected to assume office on January 1, 2026.