Indian-origin Zohran Mamdani has become the youngest mayor of a major US city in more than a century by defeating former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa by a comfortable margin. Mamdani, 34, will be the city’s first Muslim mayor, its first South Asian mayor, and the first naturalised immigrant to hold the office since Abraham Beame in the 1970s. Born in Uganda to parents of Indian descent, Professor Mahmood Mamdani and filmmaker Mira Nair, Mamdani’s rise reflects both the diversity of New York and the changing face of the Democratic Party’s base. It puts an end to the cautious centrism that has dominated city politics for decades.
Zohran Mamdani has made history as the youngest-ever and first Muslim mayor of New York City. The 34-year-old Indian-origin Democrat, and son of filmmaker Mira Nair, defeated Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa in a closely fought election. #zohranmamdani #donaldtrump… pic.twitter.com/Q9iJa35VH4
— THE WEEK (@TheWeekLive) November 5, 2025
Meanwhile, an American celebrity has landed in the soup over a vile social media remark against Mamdani. The personality in question is actor Debra Messing. Best known for playing Grace Adler in the NBC sitcom "Will & Grace", the senior actor shared a meme that called Mamdani 'Jihadist'.
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The 57-year-old Emmy winner reposted the meme on her verified Instagram Story on the election night, US media reports said. The offensive post was not created by her but she shared it from an account called 'The Persian Jewess.' The original image showed an edited ballot that listed two candidates: While one read, "A Democrat. Just a Democrat," the other said, "An actual communist jihadist. A literal Karl Marx-quoting, America-hating jihadist."
The Persian Jewess reportedly shared the image with a caption that read, "This isn’t just a mayoral race. It’s the battle for Democracy itself. New York City, make the right choice. Vote for [Andrew] Cuomo. Vote for NYC. Vote for Democracy." It was not even a veiled attack at the Mayor-elect as the hashtag #ZohranMamdani was used alongside the caption, reports pointed out.
After Debra shared the offensive post, many netizens quickly shot back and it snowballed into a major controversy. Despite the backlash, Messing is yet to delete the said story, THE WEEK found out.
Big win for Democrats in New York City
Zohran Mamdani ran a campaign based on liberal, progressive, and leftist ideas, creating the biggest upset of this election night by becoming the youngest mayor of New York City in more than a century. It has come as a major rebuke for President Donald Trump and the traditional Democratic establishment.
Mamdani’s mastery of social media, combined with his personal warmth at community events, helped him connect with younger voters and immigrant communities, taking the turnout surge past two million, the highest participation in a New York local election in more than half a century. His success suggests that enthusiasm for progressive, left-wing candidates within the Democratic Party remains powerful, despite frequent warnings from party moderates that such politics are unelectable.
