New York Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani to meet US President Trump on Friday

Weeks before taking office, New York Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani will meet US President Donald Trump at the White House on Friday.

The meeting was announced by Trump in a social media post. He claimed that the “Communist Mayor of New York City” had asked for it. While Mamdani is a democratic socialist, Trump often refers to him as a communist leader.

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Both Mamdani and Trump are fierce critics of each other’s policies. Mamdani had in part stitched his mayoral poll campaign around anti-Trump sentiments.

During his election campaign, Mamdani had vehemently criticised Trump’s immigration policies and slammed him for threatening to cut federal funding to the New York city.

Mamdani has also confirmed the meeting, saying he has reached out to the US President to discuss the concerns of the people of New York.

“I want to just speak plainly to the president about what it means to actually stand up for New Yorkers and the way in which New Yorkers are struggling to afford this city,” Mamdani said.

Dora Pekec, Mamdani’s spokesperson, has termed the meeting a “customary for an incoming mayoral administration.”

She said that the Mayor-elect will discuss public safety, economic security and the affordability agenda during his meeting with the US President.

Mamdani, who created history by becoming the youngest and first Muslim Mayor of New York, will take charge on January 1, 2026.

He has said that he wants to find a common ground with President Trump on several issues concerning the people of New York.