Mamdani Digs In on Progressive Agenda at NYC Mayor Inauguration
Letitia James, from left, Zohran Mamdani and his wife Rama Duwaji during a swearing-in ceremony at Old City Hall Station in New York, early on Jan. 1.
Photographer: Amir Hamja/The New York Times/Bloomberg
Zohran Mamdani promised to lead New York City as a democratic socialist during a frigid inauguration ceremony on the steps of City Hall, a warning to those who believed he might moderate his positions after taking office.
The nearly two-hour long event Thursday featured speeches by two of the US’s most liberal members of Congress, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Senator Bernie Sanders. New York Attorney General Letitia James, a frequent target of President Donald Trump, also had a speaking role. The ceremony served as a not-so-subtle statement of resistance to White House policies from the nation’s largest city.