US President Donald Trump confirmed that New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani will meet him at the White House on Friday. Trump announced the meeting on Truth Social, saying Mamdani asked for the discussion and that it will happen in the Oval Office.
Trump had strongly criticised Mamdani’s policies during the election. He warned that Mamdani’s leadership would bring economic and social disaster to New York. Despite this, Mamdani won the race, making history as the first South Asian and Muslim mayor of the largest US city. He defeated Republican Curtis Sliwa and former Governor Andrew Cuomo, who ran as an independent and received Trump’s endorsement just hours before the vote.
In his fiery victory speech, Mamdani challenged Trump’s immigration stance. He said New York would be powered and led by immigrants and vowed to dismantle conditions that helped Trump rise to power. Trump later called the speech “very angry” and advised Mamdani to show respect toward Washington.
Mamdani, who moved from Uganda to New York at age seven, became a US citizen in 2018. He is the son of filmmaker Mira Nair and academic Mahmood Mamdani.
