Zohran Mamdani became the first Muslim to be nominated as the New York City mayor after he won the Democratic mayoral primary.
BBC reports that with 95% of the ballots tallied, the 33-year-old left behind former governor Andrew Cuomo, 43% to 36%, in the Democratic primary with broad grassroots momentum and his ambitious agenda.
Mamdani addressed supporters, “Tonight, we made history. In the words of Nelson Mandela, It always seems impossible until it’s done. My friends, it is done. And you are the ones who did it. I am honoured to be your Democratic nominee for the Mayor of New York City.”
The state assemblyman’s defeat of Cuomo, who stepped down as governor following sexual harassment claims in 2021, was a turning point for the city’s political center of gravity.
Who is Zohran Mamdani?
Mamdani was born in Kampala, Uganda, in 1991 and immigrated to New York when he was seven. He went to the Bronx High School of Science and earned a degree in Africana Studies from Bowdoin College.
The American politician co-founded Bowdoin College’s campus chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine.
He is wed to a 27-year-old Syrian artist living in Brooklyn, Rama Duwaji. His mother, film director Mira Nair, is renowned, and his father, Professor Mahmood Mamdani, is a teacher at Columbia. His parents are both Harvard graduates.
He was previously a housing counsellor, where he aided low-income homeowners in Queens in their struggles against eviction.
Significantly, as a Muslim and South Asian mayor, Mamdani would be the first, if he is elected.
