For some Jewish New Yorkers, like Richard Siegel, Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani’s victory is concerning.

“I’m trying to make sense of it. It’s a little alarming,” he said. “It feels alienating to know that the city has basically voted against me and what I perceive as my safety. Nonetheless, I’m hopeful that moving forward, there can be some kind of common ground found.”

What You Need To Know

For some Jewish New Yorkers, Mamdani’s win is “alarming” 

Others say they are “thrilled” and feel “hopeful” 

Many of the Jewish New Yorkers NY1 spoke to described themselves as progressives who are excited about some of Mamdani’s cost-of-living policies, but are incredibly concerned about antisemitism due to his refusal to recognize Israel as a Jewish state

Advocates, like Jewish New Yorkers for Peace, say anti-Zionism and antisemitism should not be conflated

Others, like Beth Miller, are thrilled.

“To be honest, I felt hopeful about what we could build for the first time in a very, very long time,” she said.

Miller is the political director of Jewish Voices for Peace Action and says her organization endorsed Mamdani the day he announced his candidacy and canvassed for him, knocking on approximately 200,000 doors.

“The first thing that I would say, and have said, to Jewish New Yorkers who may feel differently about Zohran as an incoming mayor than I do, is that I hope that they will actually stop and listen to what he is saying about who he is and what he will build, rather than listen to what other people, specifically his opponents and Trump supporters, say about him,” Miller said.

Mamdani’s candidacy and his refusal to recognize Israel as a Jewish state divided the Jewish electorate. Miller believes Jewish voters for Mamdani worry about the cost of living and Palestinian rights.

Meanwhile, Amanda Berman, founder and CEO of Zioness Movement, says Mamdani’s stance on Israel is what scares a lot of people in her community.

“There’s a gaslighting feeling. There’s a feeling of someone saying, ‘I care about you,’ but actually not taking any steps to show us that that’s true,” Berman said.

Rabbi Dr. Ari Berman, president of Yeshiva University, says it is nice to see New Yorkers excited about an agenda they believe will be helpful to them but worries about Mamdani’s stance on Israel.

“Antisemitism isn’t just about hate. If Mayor Mamdani says he doesn’t hate Jews, I think we take him at his word. Antisemitism is also about double standards and discrimination,” Rabbi Berman said. “If you discriminate against one population and say they don’t have a right to their own state, but everybody else does, that’s discrimination, that’s a double standard, that’s antisemitism.”

Many of the Jewish New Yorkers NY1 spoke to, who said they were uncomfortable being on camera, described themselves as progressives who are excited about some of Mamdani’s cost-of-living policies, but are incredibly concerned about antisemitism.