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Mayor Zohran Mamdani vows to govern NYC ‘audaciously’ in inauguration speech
By
Brigid Bergin
,
Joe Hong
and
Stephen Rex Brown
Published Jan 1, 2026
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David Dee Delgado/Getty Images
By
Brigid Bergin
,
Joe Hong
and
Stephen Rex Brown
Published Jan 1, 2026
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Zohran Mamdani was sworn in as the 112th mayor of New York City on Thursday, marking the culmination of the democratic socialist’s rise from a two-term back-bench state legislator to the chief executive of the nation’s largest city.
Mamdani’s inauguration outside City Hall presented him as a transformative figure who would lead New York City into a new, more affordable era. Mamdani was joined on the stage by the country’s most prominent democratic socialists – Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. Both made clear that Mamdani was now at the vanguard of their movement.
In his own remarks, Mamdani pledged that he would deliver on his extraordinarily ambitious affordability agenda.
**“**The only expectation I seek to reset is that of small expectations. Beginning today we will govern expansively and audaciously,” Mamdani said in his speech.
“No longer will City Hall hesitate to use its powers to improve New Yorkers’ lives.”
Bess Adler
At 34, Mamdani takes office as the city’s youngest mayor in more than a century. He’s the city’s first South Asian, first African-born and first Muslim mayor.
"We will replace the frigidity of rugged individualism with the warmth of collectivism," he said.
Mamdani placed his hand on a Quran as Sanders administered the oath of office.
Bess Adler
“New York, thank you for inspiring our nation,” Sanders said.
Ocasio-Cortez praised Mamdani for energizing new voters.
**“**We have chosen courage over fear. We have chosen prosperity for many over spoils for the few,” Ocasio-Cortez said.
Mamdani was joined at the ceremony by his wife, Rama Duwaji, and his parents, filmmaker Mira Nair and Columbia University professor Mahmood Mamdani.
Mamdani won election thanks to a relentless focus on making life in the five boroughs more affordable. His platform centered on free buses, free universal childcare, a rent freeze on stabilized apartments and city-run grocery stores. In his speech, Mamdani also pledged to reform the city’s much-maligned property tax system.
But many of those initiatives will require support from state legislators in Albany – and Gov. Kathy Hochul. Hochul, who was at the event, has said she will not raise income taxes. At one point, the inauguration crowd erupted in chants of "tax the rich."
Hochul and Mamdani have said they’ll focus on universal childcare in 2026.
**“**We will return the vast resources of this city to the workers who call it home,” Mamdani said.
“I will not abandon my ideals for fear of being called radical.”
City Comptroller Mark Levine and Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, who is serving his second term in office, were also sworn in at the event.
Bess Adler
Mamdani may face last minute hurdles installed by his predecessor. Former Mayor Eric Adams sat on stage during the afternoon ceremony. But in the days leading up to the event, Adams took steps that will likely make it harder for Mamdani to enact his priorities.
Only weeks before leaving office, Adams added two new members and reappointed two other members to the Rent Guidelines Board, which sets the rent for stabilized apartments. The move was seen as a way to pack the nine-member board with members opposed to Mamdani’s plans to freeze rent on the city’s 1 million stabilized apartments.
Mamdani’s policies face other obstacles. His plan for a Department of Community Safety will involve reducing the NYPD’s role in certain mental health emergencies. Such a shift in law enforcement responsibilities will be of interest to the city’s powerful police unions.
Mamdani won office without staking out a clear policy on public schools beyond a vague opposition to mayoral control and charter schools. On Wednesday, Mamdani reversed his position, voicing new support for mayoral control as he announced the appointment of Kamar Samuels as the city’s new schools chancellor.
Bess Adler
Political scientist Ester Fuchs, director of the Urban and Social Policy Concentration at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs, said she was impressed with Mamdani’s overall appointments. She said the process has shown maturity.
“ He's really tried to balance putting in people in important operational positions who actually have experience to do the job that he doesn't really have the experience to do,” said Fuchs, who also served as special advisor to former Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
Fuchs even gave Mamdani credit for how he handled his biggest misstep so far. On Dec. 18, less than 24 hours after announcing a new director of appointments, Catherine Almonte Da Costa submitted her resignation over antisemitic tweets she sent in 2012.
The issue drew scrutiny given the distrust Mamdani faces among some members of the city’s Jewish community. Fuchs said Mamdani handled it appropriately. “He said it’s unacceptable and accepted her resignation.”
Mamdani later said he would not have hired Da Costa if he’d known about the tweets. The transition also overhauled its vetting process for job applicants. On Thursday, Mamdani used his speech to stress his commitment to serve all of the city’s residents.
“ I know there are some who view this administration with distrust or disdain, or who see politics as permanently broken. And while only action can change minds, I promise you this: if you are a New Yorker, I am your mayor,” Mamdani said.
The new mayor’s supporters came from across the city -- and the country -- to be part of Thursday’s swearing in festivities.
Joe Hong
Throngs of people filled the blocks south of City Hall for a block party where they could also view the ceremony. Cheers reverberated against the tightly packed blocks, notably when Mamdani called out the support from the Democratic Socialists of America.
“Hearing from the mayor that he's going to stand behind his democratic socialist principles is extremely important,” said Nafew Nowshad, 24, who travelled from Boston to attend the inaugural block party.
Nowshad phone-banked for Mamdani’s campaign from his home in Massachusetts and said his chapter of DSA in Boston is taking lessons from this race for candidates they plan to run in their own local elections. “We’ve seen what works,” he said.
“I think everyone here in this freezing cold loves New York City and wants to see it thrive,” said Enid David, a 32-year-old Lower East Side resident who also braved the block party. “Hopefully Mamdani is the person to gear us towards that.”
Shortly after the ceremony concluded, Mamdani took a series of official actions. He signed three executive orders related to housing including one that revives the Mayor’s Office to Protect Tenants. He appointed longtime tenants rights advocate Cea Weaver as the new director of the office.
He also signed two other executive orders. One established the structure of his mayor’s office with five deputy mayors. The other rescinded all previous executive orders signed on or after September 26, 2024, the date that former Mayor Eric Adams was indicted on corruption charges.
After publication, the Mamdani administration corrected a detail about one of the executive orders the mayor signed today. The story has been updated.
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new york city
Brigid Bergin
Brigid Bergin is an award-winning senior reporter on the People and Power desk. She is fiercely committed to telling stories that help people engage and support democracy. In 2022, she hosted a live, ten-week call-in politics show ahead of the midterm elections called The People's Guide to Power. Brigid's reporting in 2017 included some of the first coverage of a political newcomer now known as AOC. In 2016, she broke the news of a voter purge in Brooklyn just days before New York’s presidential primary, triggering city, state and federal investigations. Brigid also guest hosts The Brian Lehrer Show and All Of It. She graduated from the University at Albany and the CUNY Newmark School of Journalism. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or Signal 917-723-4719.
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Joe Hong
Joe Hong is the investigative data reporter for WNYC and Gothamist. He previously covered K-12 education for several newsrooms across California. His reporting has led to local reforms in juvenile justice system as well as a state law requiring universal screening for dyslexia. Got a tip? Email [email protected]
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Stephen Rex Brown
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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