Who is Zohran Mamdani?

Answer: Zohran Mamdani was born in Uganda but moved to New York when he was seven years old and obtained his U.S. citizenship in 2018. Mamdani's family home in Uganda sits on two acres of land with views of Lake Victoria, in a wealthy area known as Buziga Hill. His father, Mahmood Mamdani, is a Columbia University professor, and his mother, Mira Nair, is an Oscar-nominated filmmaker.

Answer: Zohran Mamdani, socialist NYC mayoral candidate, eloped with 28-year-old Syrian artist and illustrator Rama Duwaji, with whom he lives in an apartment in Queens. The couple got married in early 2025 but celebrated their marriage with a three-day exclusive event in Uganda later in the year.

Answer: While committing time to various campaigns, Mamdani reportedly worked as a music supervisor and "third assistant director" on a Disney film about an Indian chess prodigy directed by his mother. He was also given an on-screen cameo role in the film, which was released in 2016.

At that time, Mamdani was reportedly pursuing a rap career, going by the monikers "Mr. Cardamom" and "Young Cardamom." One of his songs was eventually featured in his mother's movie.

Answer: After graduating from Bowdoin College in Maine with a bachelor's degree in Africana Studies, Zohran Mamdani helped launch the school's first Students for Justice in Palestine chapter. In 2014, Mamdani did a four-month stint as an organizer for the left-wing advocacy group MoveOn in Seattle. He subsequently spent two months organizing with another group out of Houston called TexPIRG, while working an ongoing tutoring gig as well.

In 2015, he started knocking on doors for City Council candidate Ali Najmi and also did campaign fieldwork for Khader El-Yateem's City Council campaign. Mamdani reportedly spent some time as a field organizer for Tiffany Caban's District Attorney campaign around 2019.

Mamdani's campaign work became more serious when he became the campaign manager for Ross Barkan's losing State Senate bid in 2018. Mamdani also spent time that year working at a foreclosure prevention community group called Chhaya, where he worked as a counselor for South Asian and Caribbean families facing potential foreclosure of their homes. He reportedly left after about a year to run for the New York State Assembly seat in Astoria, New York.

Answer: Zohran Mamdani is the New York City Democratic mayoral nominee as of Fall 2025.

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, along with her fellow Democratic socialist Sen. Bernie Sanders, endorsed Mamdani ahead of New York City's primary election. Mamdani surprised many by winning New York City's Democratic mayoral primary in June 2025, but many in the Democratic establishment have yet to fully embrace the socialist nominee.

If Mamdani wins in November, he will not only become the first Muslim mayor but also the first millennial mayor of New York City. On the ballot in the November 2025 New York City mayoral election are Zohran Mamdani, Andrew Cuomo, Curtis Sliwa and others.