PNN – Zohran Mamdani is a progressive politician and a prominent figure on the left wing of the Democratic Party in the United States. He originally comes from an immigrant family of Indian descent.
Zohran Mamdani is the first Muslim mayor of New York to win a mayoral election.
Who is Zohran Mamdani?
Zahran Mamdani was born in Kampala, the capital of Uganda, in 1992. His family later immigrated to the United States and settled in New York.
His father, Mahmoud Mamdani, is a prominent professor of political science and sociology at Columbia University, and his mother, Mira Nair, is a filmmaker.
Although little is known about Mamdani’s and his family’s religious views, some sources state that Mamdani’s father is from the Khoja community of Gujarat, India, which is predominantly a Twelver Shia Muslim sect. His mother is from a Hindu family in the Indian state of Punjab.
Other sources have also introduced Mamdani as a person of Twelver Shiite beliefs.
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Mamdani completed his university studies in political science at Bowman College in the US state of Maine, and from his student days, he turned to social and justice-seeking activities.
Mamdani’s official political activity began in 2019, when he ran for the New York State Assembly as a member of the Democratic Party.
In the 2020 election, he was able to enter the state assembly as a representative of New York’s 36th district (including Astoria and parts of Queens), defeating the then-incumbent.
Winning the election with the slogan of making life easier for the working class
Mamdani was known for his socialist and popular leanings from the beginning and quickly became one of the leaders of the “Democratic Socialists of America” movement in New York, alongside figures such as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
The main focus of Mamdani’s activities is based on economic justice, affordable housing, reform of the public transportation system, and the fight against racial and class discrimination.
He always emphasizes that “local government should make life easier for the working classes” and sees politics as a tool to improve the living conditions of ordinary people.
During his time in the state legislature, he has introduced initiatives to increase public housing funding, reduce urban transportation costs, and improve access to health and education services.
In the New York City mayoral election on November 4, 2025, Zohran Mamdani was elected as the new mayor of New York by defeating former state governor Andrew Cuomo.
His victory, which came amid public discontent over the high cost of living, was interpreted as a victory for the left wing of the Democratic Party.
Mamdani’s positions on Iran and the Zionist regime
According to the American newspaper New York Post, Mamdani has strongly criticized the US airstrikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities, calling them “an illegal military action and the beginning of a new chapter of international instability.”
In his view, US policy on Iran, including the use of force without consulting Congress, is an example of “deal-breaking” and prioritizing military spending over social justice.
Mamdani has taken very critical positions towards the Zionist regime, accusing it of implementing apartheid policies in the occupied Palestinian territories.
The new mayor of New York has supported the economic and cultural boycott of the Zionist regime and declared the movement’s actions in line with international law.
Mamdani’s positions on Trump
American media have declared Mamdani a staunch opponent of US President Donald Trump.
Mamdani has described Trump’s threats to arrest or deport him as an African-American politician as an “attack on democracy” and a tactic to suppress the voices of the working classes.
Mamdani emphasizes that during his presidency, Trump has failed to meet the people’s economic demands, such as reducing the cost of living.
While Trump called Mamdani a communist and a disaster, Mamdani said that Trump wants to stoke the flames of discord to cover up the failure of his programs to support the working class.
Trump has presented Mamdani as a threat to the political and economic ideology of the United States, and Mamdani, in turn, has considered Trump’s attempt to portray this confrontation as ideological as an attempt to cover up the failure to address the economic and livelihood problems of the people.