Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani said Tuesday that he plans to reach out to President Trump before taking office on New Year’s Day, telling NBC New York that a strong relationship between City Hall and the White House “will be critical to the success of the city.”
“I will be reaching out to the White House as we prepare to actually take office,” said Mamdani, though he did not specify when that would happen, the New York Post reports.
He did say, however, that he would be “proactive” when it comes to dealing with Trump’s tough immigration and crime enforcement efforts.
“[If] President Trump wants to speak about lowering the cost of living or delivering cheaper groceries, like he ran on [in 2024], I’m there to have that conversation,” the mayor-elect said.
He later added that he would tell the commander-in-chief: “I’m here to work for the benefit of everyone that calls the city home, and that wherever there is a possibility for working together toward that end, I’m ready, and if [the administration’s policies] are to the expense of those New Yorkers, I will fight.”
When asked about Mamdani’s outreach effort, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told The Post: “I’ll let the president respond himself to that comment by Mr. Mamdani.”
Ahead of the Nov. 4 mayoral election, Trump warned that he would consider withholding federal funding from New York City and pursuing a federal takeover if Mamdani, whom he labeled a “Communist,” won the race.
In his first public remarks since the Democratic socialist’s victory, the president struck a slightly softer tone.
“I hope it works out for New York” and “we’ll help him a little bit, maybe.”
“He has to be a little bit respectful of Washington because if he’s not, he doesn’t have a chance of succeeding,” Trump told Fox News anchor Bret Baier following Mamdani’s victory. “I want to make the city succeed.”
Trump added that he had no plans to contact Mamdani and that “it would be more appropriate for him to reach out to us.”
“I’m here,” he said.
Mamdani also said in Tuesday’s interview that he has spoken with Gov. Kathy Hochul about how to handle Trump’s periodic threats and frequent public criticism, The Post reported.
Mamdani’s latest staff appointment includes the addition of his longtime chief adviser, Elle Bisgaard-Church, who has been described as the “chief architect” of his campaign proposal to deploy social workers for certain non-violent 911 calls in New York City.
The proposal, which has faced significant criticism, was developed by Bisgaard-Church—an Ivy League-educated California native and relative political newcomer affiliated with the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). Mamdani announced Monday that Bisgaard-Church will once again serve as his chief adviser at City Hall, continuing in the same role she held during his campaign and tenure in the state assembly.
According to CBS News, Bisgaard-Church played a key role in shaping Mamdani’s message to voters and is widely credited by campaign staff as the primary force behind his Department of Community Safety proposal.
In crafting the Department of Community Safety proposal—which seeks to replace police officers with mental health professionals for non-life-threatening emergencies, particularly in subway stations—Bisgaard-Church reportedly consulted with mental health experts, public safety officials from other cities, and former New York City Police Department (NYPD) Chief of Department Rodney Harrison, Fox News reported.
A campaign proposal on Mamdani’s website projects the cost of the new department at approximately $1.1 billion.
In addition to overseeing Mamdani’s widely debated Department of Community Safety proposal, Bisgaard-Church played a central role in organizing weekly meetings between Mamdani’s campaign and the New York City chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) to coordinate with the groups that helped secure his victory.
