Hochul didn\u2019t blink, remaining steadfast in her refusal. And so Mamdani\u2019s chances of forcing the governor to change course depend on the perception that he would, if forced, actually raise property taxes \u2014 and that he even could.<\/p>\n
Now, as the mayor\u2019s supporters fan out to press his case, they are being met with widespread skepticism on both fronts.<\/p>\n
Andrea Scarborough, a homeowner in Addisleigh Park in southeastern Queens, told THE CITY that she flipped out when she heard about Mamdani\u2019s gambit.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause you\u2019re not able to raise taxes on the 1%, you\u2019re looking to burden your constituents? I see it as a game of chicken, where you\u2019re poking the governor,\u201d she said. \u201cI can\u2019t imagine that this man would really want to do this, but if he does, he would be a one-term mayor.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
![\"Mayor](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1772042048_6_021026_hochul_mamdani_building_presser-09.jpg\")
Mayor Zohran Mamdani speaks alongside Gov. Kathy Hochul at the Bedford Armory about cutting bureaucratic red tape for construction projects, Feb. 10, 2026. Credit: Ben Fractenberg\/THE CITY<\/p>\n
Mamdani\u2019s property tax proposal also garnered swift backlash from lawmakers and officials, who pointed out that higher property taxes would disproportionately squeeze lower- and middle-class homeowners in majority neighborhoods of color, as well as renters.<\/p>\n
The mayor would need the City Council to approve any property tax hikes, but Speaker Julie Menin said in a statement last week that increases \u201cshould not be on the table whatsoever.\u201d While Mamdani\u2019s allies in the Council haven\u2019t said much publicly about the property tax proposal, it\u2019s unlikely he would find enough political support for a property tax hike if it came down to it.<\/p>\n
Nonetheless, Mamdani\u2019s supporters rallied Wednesday at the State Capitol in Albany to put pressure on Hochul, including Councilmember Chi Oss\u00e9 (D-Brooklyn); he and 21 other members signed a joint statement Wednesday pushing for the state to give the city authority to enact higher taxes on the rich. Mamdani didn\u2019t attend<\/a>, but organizers of the rally have been pushing the same idea as the mayor \u2014 that he doesn\u2019t really want to raise property taxes, but if he must, then the governor is to blame.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s not something that Zohran wants to do. They would be Hochul\u2019s homeowner taxes, if they do end up happening,\u201d said Batul Hassan, a Democratic Socialists of America steering committee member and board member of Our Time for an Affordable New York City<\/a>, a lobbying group which champions Mamdani\u2019s agenda.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s now Kathy Hochul\u2019s choice. She can either raise taxes on the richest New Yorkers, which is an extremely popular measure,\u201d Hassan continued, \u201cor she can enact austerity on the city and the state.\u201d<\/p>\n But political consultant Evan Roth Smith said people aren\u2019t buying Mamdani\u2019s framing and called the messaging \u201cmuddled.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDo they want to do this or not?\u201d he said. \u201cThey\u2019re talking themselves into a doom loop. You can\u2019t set up your own failure logic like that.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cVoters don\u2019t want or expect Mamdani to play games. Zohran tells you what he wants to do, not what he doesn\u2019t want to do,\u201d he added. \u201cThat\u2019s why it\u2019s been so unsuccessful for him to try and convince New Yorkers that he would be forced.\u201d<\/p>\n Dora Pekec, a spokesperson for Mamdani, said, \u201cThe mayor has been crystal clear he believes we need to raise taxes on the wealthiest New Yorkers and the most profitable organizations.\u201d<\/p>\n Pawns and Bargaining Chips<\/p>\n Mamdani met last week with Black state senators and assemblymembers at City Hall to discuss property taxes \u2014 and apologized for proposing it before reaching out, according to people familiar with the meeting.<\/p>\n Homeowners in predominantly Black neighborhoods pay property tax rates that can be double<\/a> what homeowners in primarily white neighborhoods pay. The disparity \u2014 and many stalled attempts to reform it \u2014 was a highlight of Mamdani\u2019s inauguration speech<\/a>.<\/p>\n Property taxes affect New Yorkers well beyond homeowners. Rents can include the cost of property taxes. Utility companies bake property taxes into the customer bills. Consumer goods may also increase as taxes do. So, jacking up property taxes would run counter to Mamdani\u2019s affordability agenda.<\/p>\n \u201cThe whole thing about raising property taxes when you ran on affordability seems to be confusing,\u201d said Lupe Todd-Medina, a political consultant. \u201cIt\u2019s unfair to put the blame on the governor.\u201d<\/p>\n Democratic state Sen. James Sanders, who represents parts of southeast Queens and the Rockaway peninsula, later posted on X<\/a> that raising property taxes was \u201cnot an option.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cNY already has high costs, I won\u2019t support balancing budgets on the backs of hardworking families and homeowners,\u201d he posted. \u201cWe urge the Mayor to explore other solutions.\u201d<\/p>\n Edmundo McKenzie, a homeowner in Canarsie, Brooklyn, said he was confused to hear the mayor proposed a property tax increase.<\/p>\n \u201cThe city to me is spending so much money and they can find this money in other areas, other than taxing the homeowners,\u201d he said, adding he was worried about further taxing the wealthy for fear they\u2019d leave<\/a>.<\/p>\n Queens Borough President Donovan Richards told Mamdani during his preliminary budget briefing last week that raising property taxes was a \u201cnonstarter\u201d for him.<\/p>\n \u201cI was shocked,\u201d he said. \u201cI thought whoever came up with this strategy, I felt it was misguided.\u201d<\/p>\n Struggling homeowners and renters were being used \u201cas a bargaining chip,\u201d he said, adding that he\u2019d been approached by people begging him to make sure the property tax hikes didn\u2019t happen.<\/p>\n \u201cOnce you put that message out there, what do you want me to tell my constituents? They\u2019re looking to me now,\u201d Richards said. \u201cI just think it\u2019s a misguided strategy to put \u2014 especially Black and brown communities who are already living in the margins \u2014 to put us in the middle of this isn\u2019t fair.\u201d<\/p>\n Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Renyoso said the mayor had to be \u201ccareful about pushing for an outcome from Albany that makes homeowners feel like they\u2019re pawns in a budget proposal.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI just believe first and foremost we should be taxing the rich,\u201d he said. \u201cThe alternative is not taxing the middle class.\u201d<\/p>\n The state Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic and Asian Legislative Caucus supported increasing taxes<\/a> on the wealthy. And the idea is popular, according to some<\/a> polls<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n