NEW YORK (AP) \u2014 When he announced his run for mayor last October, Zohran Mamdani was a state lawmaker unknown to most New York City residents.<\/p>\n
But that was before the 34-year-old democratic socialist crashed the national political scene with a stunning upset over former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo in June\u2019s Democratic primary.<\/a><\/p>\n On Tuesday, Mamdani completed his political ascension, again vanquishing Cuomo, as well as Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa, in the general election<\/a>. <\/p>\n The former foreclosure prevention counselor and one-time rapper becomes the city\u2019s first Muslim mayor, first born in Africa, and first of South Asian heritage \u2014 not to mention its youngest mayor in more than a century.<\/p>\n \u201cI will wake up each morning with a singular purpose: To make this city better for you than it was the day before,\u201d Mamdani promised New Yorkers in his victory speech.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s a look at the next chief executive of America\u2019s largest city:<\/p>\n Mamdani\u2019s progressive promises for New York City<\/p>\n Mamdani ran on an optimistic vision for New York City.<\/p>\n His campaign was packed with big policies aimed at lowering the cost of living for everyday New Yorkers, from free child care, free buses to a rent freeze for people living in rent-regulated apartments and new affordable housing \u2014 much of it funded by raising taxes on the wealthy.<\/p>\n He\u2019s also proposed launching a pilot program for city-run grocery stores as a way to combat high food prices<\/a>.<\/p>\n Since his Democratic primary win, Mamdani has moderated some of his more polarizing rhetoric, particularly around law enforcement.<\/p>\n He backed off a 2020 post calling to \u201cdefund\u201d the New York Police Department and publicly apologized<\/a> to NYPD officers for calling the department \u201cracist\u201d in another social media post.<\/p>\n While Mamdani is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, he\u2019s said he\u2019s running on his own distinct platform and does not embrace all of the activist group\u2019s priorities, which have included ending mandatory jail time for certain crimes and cutting police budgets. <\/p>\n NYC\u2019s first Muslim mayor<\/p>\n Mamdani leaned into his faith<\/a> amid the anti-Muslim rhetoric<\/a> that marked the campaign\u2019s final weeks.<\/p>\n Outside a Bronx mosque in late October, he spoke in emotional terms about the \u201cindignities\u201d long faced by the city\u2019s Muslim population, and vowed to further embrace his identity.<\/p>\n \u201cI will not change who I am, how I eat, or the faith that I\u2019m proud to call my own,\u201d he said. \u201cBut there is one thing that I will change. I will no longer look for myself in the shadows. I will find myself in the light.\u201d<\/p>\n Famous filmmaker mother<\/p>\n Mamdani was born in Kampala, Uganda, to Indian parents and became an American citizen in 2018, shortly after graduating from college.<\/p>\n He lived with his family briefly in Cape Town, South Africa, before moving to New York City when he was 7.<\/p>\n Mamdani\u2019s mother, Mira Nair, is an award-winning filmmaker whose credits include \u201cMonsoon Wedding,\u201d \u201cThe Namesake\u201d and \u201cMississippi Masala.\u201d His father, Mahmood Mamdani, is an anthropology professor at Columbia University.<\/p>\n Mamdani married Rama Duwaji, a Syrian American artist, earlier this year<\/a>. The couple, who met on the dating app Hinge, live in the Astoria neighborhood of the city\u2019s borough of Queens.<\/p>\n Once a fledgling rapper<\/p>\n Mamdani attended the Bronx High School of Science, where he cofounded the prestigious public school\u2019s first cricket team, according to his legislative bio.<\/p>\n He graduated in 2014 from Bowdoin College in Maine, where he earned a degree in Africana studies and cofounded his college\u2019s Students for Justice in Palestine chapter.<\/p>\n After college, he worked as a foreclosure prevention counselor in Queens, helping residents avoid eviction, a job he says inspired him<\/a> to run for public office.<\/p>\n Mamdani also had a notable side hustle in the local hip-hop scene, rapping under the moniker Young Cardamom and later Mr. Cardamom. During his first run for state lawmaker, Mamdani gave a nod to his brief foray into music, describing himself as a \u201cB-list rapper.\u201d<\/p>\n Early political career <\/p>\n Mamdani cut his teeth in local politics working on campaigns for Democratic candidates in Queens and Brooklyn.<\/p>\n He was first elected to the New York Assembly in 2020, knocking off a longtime Democratic incumbent for a Queens district covering Astoria and surrounding neighborhoods. He has handily won reelection twice.<\/p>\n The democratic socialist\u2019s most notable legislative accomplishment has been pushing through a pilot program that made a handful of city buses free for a year. He\u2019s also proposed legislation<\/a> banning nonprofits from \u201cengaging in unauthorized support of Israeli settlement activity.\u201d<\/p>\n Mamdani\u2019s opponents, particularly Cuomo, dismissed him as woefully unprepared<\/a> for managing the complexities of running America\u2019s largest city.<\/p>\n But Mamdani framed his relative inexperience as a potential asset, saying in a mayoral debate he\u2019s \u201cproud\u201d he doesn\u2019t have Cuomo\u2019s \u201cexperience of corruption, scandal and disgrace.\u201d<\/p>\n Viral campaign videos <\/p>\n Mamdani used buzzy campaign videos \u2014 many with winking references to Bollywood and his Indian heritage \u2014 to help make inroads with voters outside his slice of Queens.<\/p>\n On New Year\u2019s Day, he took part in the annual polar plunge into the chilly waters off Coney Island in a full dress suit<\/a> to break down his plan to \u201cfreeze\u201d rents.<\/p>\n He interviewed food cart vendors about \u201cHalal-flation\u201d and humorously pledged to make the city\u2019s beloved chicken over rice lunches \u201ceight bucks again.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n In TikTok videos, he appealed to voters of color by speaking in Spanish, Bangla and other languages.<\/p>\n During his general election campaign, the viral clips were joined by talked-about television commercials \u2014 with on-theme ads that aired during \u201cThe Golden Bachelor,\u201d \u201cSurvivor\u201d and the Knicks\u2019 season opener. <\/p>\n Pro-Palestinian views<\/p>\n A longtime supporter of Palestinian rights, Mamdani continued his unstinting criticism of Israel \u2014 long seen<\/a> as a third rail in New York politics \u2014 through his campaign.<\/p>\n Mamdani has accused the Israeli government of committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, and has said Israel should exist as \u201ca state with equal rights\u201d for all, rather than a \u201cJewish state.\u201d<\/p>\n He was hammered by his opponents<\/a> and many leaders in the Jewish community for his stances, with Cuomo accusing Mamdani of \u201cfueling antisemitism.\u201d<\/p>\n After facing criticism early in the race for refusing to denounce the phrase \u201cglobalize the intifada,\u201d Mamdani vowed to discourage<\/a> others from using it moving forward. He also met with rabbis and attended a synagogue during the High Holy Days as he courted Jewish voters.<\/p>\n In his victory remarks Tuesday, he pledged that under his leadership, City Hall will stand against antisemitism.<\/p>\n ___<\/p>\n Follow Philip Marcelo on X at twitter.com\/philmarcelo<\/a>. <\/p>\n