New York Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani names all-women transition team after massive win
Mamdani’s transition is set to be led by women leaders who have worked in the administrations of former mayors Bill de Blasio, Eric Adams and Michael Bloomberg.
Zohran Mamdani, the newly elected New York Mayor, announced an all-female transition team in the first briefing after a massive victory for the first Indian-origin, African-born Muslim to have assumed the top post.
Mamdani, who defeated former Governor Andrew Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa, is set to become mayor on January 1, 2026.
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Mamdani’s transition is set to be led by women leaders who have previously worked in the administrations of former New York Mayors Bill de Blasio, Eric Adams and Michael Bloomberg.
Progressive political strategist Elana Leopold has been appointed as the transition’s executive director, while former first deputy mayor Maria Torres-Springer, ex-Federal Trade Commission chair Lina Khan, nonprofit leader Grace Bonilla, and city budget expert Melanie Hartzog will serve as transition co-chairs.
In what was the first press briefing following the mayor results, Mamdani said he "will build a city hall capable of delivering" his campaign's promises. He said he will announce leaders overseeing his agenda "in the coming days", according to BBC.
“We will cast a wide net. We will speak to the organizers on the front lines of the fight to improve our city government, veterans with proven track records, policy experts from around the country and the world, and working people who know better than anyone what their neighborhoods need," Mamdani said in the briefing.
‘Trump hasn’t reached out’
Mamdani, while addressing the briefing, said that the White House hasn’t reached out after his win and that he is open to speaking with US President Donald Trump.
“(I am) interested in having a conversation with President Trump on the ways in which we can work together to serve New Yorkers, whether that be delivering on his campaign promises around cost of living or the many issues that New Yorkers have been sharing with me about the drastic impacts that the legislation that President Trump has ushered through Washington will mean for them and their lives,” the Mayor-elect said.
He further said that he had a conversation with Republican rival Curtis Sliwa and was “looking forward” to talk with outgoing Mayor Eric Adams.
