New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani was sworn into office in the first minutes of the New Year at the historic City Hall subway station, with his wife, Rama Duwaji, by his side.
The oath, in which he pledged to support the Constitution of the United States and the laws of New York, was taken before New York State Attorney General Letitia James.
“Happy New Year to all New Yorkers, both inside this tunnel and up there,” Mamdani said.
“This is truly an honor and a privilege of a lifetime,” added the mayor.
and many in his city of 8 million people hope, some with hope, others with apprehension, that he will be a mayor who makes an impact.
The socialist’s plans for his first day in office, this Thursday (1st), reflect his policies and priorities, without straying too far from his predecessors, with an official inauguration ceremony at midnight, followed by a more festive ceremony in the afternoon.
New York law stipulates that mayors’ four-year terms begin on January 1, after the election. To avoid any ambiguity about who is in charge of the most populous city in the United States, it has become tradition to hold a low-key swearing-in ceremony just after midnight.
Mamdani chose the Old City Hall metro station, decommissioned in the middle of the last century and accessible only a few times a year through guided tours, as the location for his inauguration.
The choice of the subway, according to Mamdani’s transition team, reflects its “commitment to the workers who keep our city running every day.”
Mamdani, a 34-year-old former state representative, has promised rent freezes, buses and free child care, building a campaign around affordability issues that some see as a promising path forward for the Democratic Party across the country ahead of the midterm elections.
Mamdani inspired a record turnout of more than 2 million voters and won 50% of the vote, nearly 10 percentage points ahead of independent candidate Andrew Cuomo and well ahead of Republican Curtis Sliwa.
Attorney General James was among his early high-profile supporters. During President Donald Trump’s first term, James launched an investigation into his business practices in New York, which resulted in a court ruling in 2024 that found Trump fraudulently inflated his net worth to deceive creditors.
The Trump administration has targeted James during her second term, accusing her of real estate fraud.
Grant Reeher, a political science professor at Syracuse University, stated that James’s participation in the inauguration would send a message to his core supporters that Mamdani “will be”.
