New Era Begins at City Hall as Mamdani Sworn into Office

A new era began at City Hall as Zohran Mamdani, the first Muslim elected to the office, put his hand on a Quran held by his wife, Rama Duwaji, and was sworn in by Senator Bernie Sanders at the Jan. 1 public ceremony.

Tens of thousands gathered in the Canyon of Heroes on Broadway in bitter cold weather to listen to the man who was born in Uganda—and only arrived in the United States when he was 7 years old. At 34, he’s the youngest person elected mayor in nearly 100 years.

And even in the first few days since taking office, Mamdani’s actions were already contrasting sharply with those of his predecessor, Eric Adams.

Adams had refrained from criticizing Donald Trump. Although Mamdani had a make-nice session with Trump after the mayoral election, the new mayor said he had spoken with the president on Jan. 3 to tell him he did not support the move to remove Venezuelan president Nicholas Maduro and his wife in an early-morning raid.

“I called the president and spoke with him directly to register my opposition to this act,” Mamdani said at an unrelated news conference, stating that he was “opposed to a pursuit of regime change, to the violation of federal and international law.”

And he also in his first few days made moves to deliver on housing promises, appointing Cea Weaver, a tenant advocate, to be the head of the Office of Tenant Protection. She was a leader of the group Housing Justice for All and helped shape the state’s 2019 overhaul of rent stabilization. Mamdani said the revitalized tenants office “will serve as a central coordinating body to defend tenants’ rights, stand up to landlords, and ensure city agencies act swiftly on behalf of renters facing unsafe or illegal conditions.”

He also appointed Dana Levy as Housing Commissioner. Levy previously served as senior vice president of homeownership and community development at the New York State Homes and Community Renewal agency as well as senior adviser to the New York attorney general and director of organizing at the Urban Homesteading Assistance Board.

But in his inaugural address, Mamdani issued a largely conciliatory message to all New Yorkers. And at only 24 minutes, the speech seemed tailored to the sub-freezing weather that nevertheless drew a huge crowd to his public swearing-in ceremony. Attendees included Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who swore Mamdani into office, and Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY).

“Today begins a new era,” he said.

“I stand before you moved by the privilege of taking this sacred oath, humbled by the faith that you have placed in me, and honored to serve as either your 111th or 112th mayor of New York City,” a reference to an anomaly in the city’s official numbering system.

“But I do not stand alone. I stand alongside you, the tens of thousands gathered here in Lower Manhattan, warmed against the January chill by the resurgent flame of hope.

“I stand alongside countless more New Yorkers watching from cramped kitchens in Flushing and barbershops in East New York, from cellphones propped against the dashboards of parked taxi cabs at LaGuardia, from hospitals in Mott Haven, and libraries in El Barrio that have too long known only neglect.

“I stand alongside construction workers in steel-toed boots and halal cart vendors whose knees ache from working all day.

“I stand alongside neighbors who carry a plate of food to the elderly couple down the hall, those in a rush who still lift strangers’ strollers up subway stairs, and every person who makes the choice day after day, even when it feels impossible, to call our city home.

“I stand alongside over 1 million New Yorkers who voted for this day nearly two months ago—and I stand just as resolutely alongside those who did not.

“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. Regardless of whether we agree, I will protect you, celebrate with you, mourn alongside you, and never, not for a second, hide from you.”

He said he would not be a mayor of small solutions, pledging instead to lead “audaciously.”

“In writing this address, I have been told that this is the occasion to reset expectations, that I should use this opportunity to encourage the people of New York to ask for little and expect even less. I will do no such thing. The only expectation I seek to reset is that of small expectations.

“Beginning today, we will govern expansively and audaciously. We may not always succeed. But never will we be accused of lacking the courage to try.”

Former mayor Eric Adams decided to attend the public swearing-in ceremony. But hours later, in one of his first acts as mayor, Mamdani signed an order repealing all nine executive orders that Adams had signed after Sept. 26, 2024. That was the date that a four-count bribery and conspiracy indictment was handed down by the Justice Department. In a controversial move, President Trump subsequently ordered his DOJ to drop the case, which triggered resignations by DOJ attorneys and generated harsh criticism about Adams’s too-cozy relationship with the president.