Mayor Zohran Mamdani and former President Barack Obama spent Saturday afternoon at a child care center in the Bronx, reading and singing to a group of toddlers to promote Mamdani’s push for free childcare in the city.
The school visit followed the pair’s first-ever meeting in New York City.
Obama offered enthusiastic support for Mamdani’s focus on bringing universal childcare to New York City. Since taking office, Mamdani has made historic strides alongside Gov. Kathy Hochul on the issue — within his first two weeks in office, the mayor struck a deal with the state to deliver free childcare for two-year-olds and launched a plan to achieve universal childcare for children under five.
“This is what we need, making an investment in these amazing kids,” Obama said to reporters as he and Mamdani left the center.
The pair led the group in a rendition of “Wheels on the Bus” and read a picture book. Mamdani stayed on message with the group of toddlers, discussing his affordability agenda for housing when Obama asked who among the class had built a sand castle before.
Even the chosen picture book, “Alone & Together” by Émilie Chazerand, aligned with Mamdani’s focus on community and collective effort.
Obama offered enthusiastic support for Mamdani’s focus on bringing universal childcare to New York City. Since taking office, Mamdani has made historic strides alongside Gov. Kathy Hochul on the issue — within his first two weeks in office, the mayor struck a deal with the state to deliver free childcare for two-year-olds and launched a plan to achieve universal childcare for children under five.Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office
Mamdani and Obama ribbed each other about whose city had better pizza, asking the toddlers whether they thought Chicago or New York offered a better slice.
The visit came at a crucial moment for the Mamdani administration, which is pushing various improvements to public childcare and early childhood education programs ahead of the 2026-27 school year.
Last week, Mamdani announced that seven new early childhood education centers will open across the city this fall, building on a citywide expansion of the city’s 3-K program last month.
The meeting between the democratic socialist mayor and the former president, first reported by Politico, signals progress in the pair’s growing rapport after the 2025 mayoral election, in which Obama declined to make an endorsement. Now, with Mamdani making progress on a childcare plan overwhelmingly popular with Democrats, the former president is offering a stronger backing.
Though Obama did not endorse Mamdani in 2025, the former president called the then-candidate in advance of his November victory to offer advice. Now, just over a week after the mayor marked his first 100 days in office, the pair appears to be building a rapport.
In a Sunday interview with NBC’s Kristen Welker on “Meet the Press,” Mamdani said that New York families “will see full universal child care for two-year-olds by the end of the first term, and then in the second term, we would pursue fulfilling that for one-year-olds and those from six weeks and above.”
“We’ve always said over the course of the campaign, we would deliver it for New Yorkers from the ages of six weeks to five years,” Mamdani said. “What we’ve started in these first 100 days was fixing the system for three-year-olds. We’ve delivered on that.”
Watch the full Mamdani Meet the Press interview below: