Zohran Kwame Mamdani, a 34-year-old politician born in Kampala, Uganda, has been elected mayor of New York City.
Mamdani defeated Andrew Cuomo, who ran as a third-party candidate after losing the Democratic primary in June, by about nine points, with Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa trailing far behind. Mayor Eric Adams, who also mounted a third-party campaign for re-election after winning as a Democrat in 2021, dropped out of the race in September and endorsed Cuomo last month.
Who is Zohran Mamdani?
Zohran Mamdani was born in Kampala on 18 October 1991 to a prominent Ugandan-Indian family. His father, Professor Mahmood Mamdani, is a renowned political theorist and former director of the Makerere Institute of Social Research (MISR). His mother, Mira Nair, is an internationally acclaimed film director, best known for her work on Queen of Katwe—a film inspired by a Ugandan chess prodigy.
Interestingly, Zohran’s early creative pursuits included rapping, and one of his soundtracks featured in Queen of Katwe. He grew up living between Uganda and the United States and today holds dual citizenship.
The Mamdani family has also been in the Ugandan spotlight for other reasons. In 2016, Professor Mamdani was involved in a widely publicised academic controversy with researcher Dr Stella Nyanzi, which culminated in Nyanzi’s dramatic nude protest over disagreements about her role in MISR’s academic programmes. Professor Mamdani eventually retired in February 2022.
Mamdani’s Political Journey
Mamdani’s political journey began in 2015 as a volunteer for Ali Najmi’s city council campaign in New York. By 2017, he had joined the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) and went on to work on various grassroots campaigns, including those of Palestinian-American pastor Khader El-Yateem and progressive journalist Ross Barkan. He also served as a field organiser for Tiffany Cabán’s high-profile 2019 run for Queens County District Attorney.
In October 2019, Mamdani launched his own campaign to represent New York’s 36th State Assembly District, covering parts of Astoria and Long Island City in Queens. Running on a platform of housing justice, criminal justice reform, and public ownership of utilities, Mamdani gained the endorsement of the DSA.
His upset victory in the June 2020 Democratic primary over four-term incumbent Aravella Simotas took nearly a month to confirm. He went on to win the general election unopposed—and was re-elected without contest in both 2022 and 2024.
A Historic Win
Now that Zohran Kwame Mamdani has won the mayoral seat for New York City, he has made history as the first Ugandan-born American to occupy the position.
