Zohran Mamdani Takes Oath as NYC Mayor

By Staff, Agencies

Zohran Mamdani was sworn in as New York City mayor at midnight in a private ceremony at an abandoned subway station, ahead of a public swearing-in and block party outside City Hall.

Mamdani, 34, was sworn into office by the New York attorney general, Letitia James, surrounded by wife, members of his immediate family, including his mother and a film-maker, and his father, a professor of African studies at Columbia University.

Mamdani called his swearing-in "the honor and privilege of a lifetime," reflecting on its significance at the historic City Hall subway station, a nod to the city's vital public transit legacy. He expressed excitement to begin his term and meet the public the following day.

Mamdani then announced and welcomed a new transportation commissioner for the city, Mike Flynn, a veteran city planner, with the mayor saying he wanted to make New York’s public transit network “the envy of the world”. Flynn said he was accepting the “job of a lifetime”.

“Thank you all so much … and I will see you later,” Mamdani concluded, to audience laughter, before departing up the wide subway stairs where he took the oath, followed by attendees.

The ceremony was also attended by the outgoing mayor, Eric Adams, who had held off from a commitment to attending but later said he’d “like to be there to show the smooth, peaceful transition of power”.

To honor his Muslim faith, Mamdani was sworn in using a Qur’an, Islam’s holiest book, becoming the first mayor in New York City to do so. He was sworn in at midnight with his hand on his grandfather’s Qur’an and one that belonged to Arturo Schomburg, a Black writer and historian, which was lent to the mayor by the New York public library, according to the New York Times.

Also attending were a diverse cast of New Yorkers Mamdani selected for an inaugural committee, including actor John Turturro, playwright Cole Escola and writer Colson Whitehead, as well as advocates, small business owners and campaign workers who the incoming mayor’s office says have “provided perspective, guidance and cultural sensibility” for the ceremony.

The midnight ceremony will be followed a 1pm public event at which the new mayor will be introduced by political ally and Bronx Democratic congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and sworn in by Vermont senator Bernie Sanders.

Mamdani’s office has said the choice to be sworn in at the old city hall subway station reflected his “commitment to the working people who keep our city running every day”.

Mamdani called Old City Hall Station, opened in 1904, a monument to a city that built great things to transform people's lives, adding, “That ambition need not be a memory confined only to our past.”

The day’s events are a culmination of a remarkable rise to power in the US’s most populous city, both for a political unknown and for the Democratic Socialist party that Mamdani, elected as a Democrat, represents.

Mamdani first gained electoral momentum by defeating former governor Andrew Cuomo in the primary, as Adams, facing federal scrutiny, opted out of the Democratic race.

In April, Mamdani trailed Cuomo 36% to 64%, but his savvy social media campaign and grassroots efforts soon energized first-time voters, particularly those struggling with post-pandemic living costs.

A campaign spokesperson credited Mamdani's success to his constant presence, with over 10,000 volunteers knocking on 100,000 doors. His platform included rent freezes, free metro transport, city-run grocery stores, and a new department of community safety focused on mental health programs.

Democrat campaign veteran Hank Sheinkopf said that Mamdani “represents the city of the future – a more Asian city, a more Muslim city, and what could be a more leftwing city”.

In November, Mamdani won the election with 50.78% of the vote, defeating Curtis Sliwa and Cuomo. In his victory speech, he vowed to serve working New Yorkers, saying, “Let the words we’ve spoken together, the dreams we’ve dreamt together, become the agenda we deliver together. This city belongs to you.”