NEW YORK (AP) — Less than 24 hours after crowds of enthusiastic supporters gathered in Manhattan for his history-making inauguration, Zohran Mamdani began his first full day on the job with a routine familiar to many New Yorkers: going from a cramped apartment to the subway.
Bundled up against the freezing temperatures and seemingly fighting a cold, he stepped out of the one-bedroom Queens apartment he shares with his wife on Friday morning. But unlike most travelers, Mamdani’s journey was documented by a photo and video crew, and from time to time neighbors interrupted him to wish him luck.
The 34-year-old democratic socialist, whose victory was hailed as a watershed moment for the progressive movement, now begins the task of running the nation’s largest city: signing orders, announcing appointments, facing questions from the press — and answering some of the tasks he did in his first hour.
But first, a day’s commute full of symbolism.
Flanked by security guards and a small clutch of aides on the Manhattan-bound train, he agreed to take several selfies with the wide-eyed riders, then retreated to a corner seat on the train to review his briefing materials.
When a pair of French tourists, confused by the hubbub, approached Mamdani, he introduced himself as “the new mayor of New York.” They looked suspicious. He held up the morning copy of the New York Daily News, showing his smiling face as proof.
Mamdani, a Democrat, is not alone in using the transit system to communicate relatability among city mayors. His predecessor, Eric Adams, also rode the subway on his first day, and both Bill de Blasio and Michael Bloomberg made a habit of it, especially when trying to make a political point.
A few minutes after Mamdani entered the city hall, his picture of him boarding a public transport became popular on social media.
If the ride served as a good-time photo-op, it seemed to reflect Mamdani’s pledge, in his inaugural speech, to ensure his “government looks and lives like the people it represents.”
His other early works also seem to underline that preference.
After focusing much of his campaign on making rent affordable for New Yorkers, Mamdani ran from his inauguration ceremony Thursday into the lobby of a Brooklyn apartment building, to rapturous cheers from tenants’ unions as he vowed to press ahead with the city’s ongoing legal battle against an allegedly negligent landlord.
Mamdani’s other work, meanwhile, shows the unusual scrutiny his fledgling administration faced, particularly his criticism of Israel and outspoken support for the Palestinian cause.
In an effort to give his administration a “clean slate,” he rescinded a slate of executive orders issued by Adams late in his tenure, including two related to Israel: one that officially adopted a controversial definition of anti-Semitism that included certain criticism of Israel, and another that prohibited city agencies and employees from boycotting or boycotting the country.
The move drew a sharp backlash from some Jewish groups, with Israeli government posts on social media accusing Mamdani of “pouring anti-Semitic gasoline on an open fire”.
Asked by a reporter on Friday about the rescinded order, Mamdani read from prepared remarks, pledging that his administration would be “relentless in its efforts to fight hatred and division.” He noted that he left the mayor’s office to fight anti-Semitism.
Mamdani also announced the opening of a “mass engagement” office, which he said will continue his campaign’s field operations to bring more New Yorkers into the political ranks.
With phones in the air, ringing by supporters and passers-by who stood several rows deep to catch a glimpse of the new mayor, Mamdani acknowledged the weight of the present moment.
“We have an opportunity where New Yorkers are allowing themselves to once again believe in the possibilities of city government,” he said. “That is not faith that will sustain itself in the absence of action.”
Also on Mamdani’s to-do list: moving into the mayor’s official residence, a lavish mansion in Manhattan’s Upper East Side neighborhood, before the lease on his Queens apartment runs out later this month.
___
Associated Press writer Jennifer Peltz contributed to this report.
