In office · 2026 Zohran Mamdani — Governing for the Working Class in the Richest City

Sworn in 1 January 2026 as New York City's 112th mayor — its first Muslim mayor and a democratic socialist — Mamdani built his campaign on cost-of-living: freeze the rent, free buses, tax the wealthy. His administration issued 12 executive orders in week one (housing, junk fees, subscription traps), a pace the prior administration took months to match, and appointed former FTC chair Lina Khan among progressive hires. Not everything has landed — his property-tax proposal was rejected by the City Council and he backed away from it — and feared wealth flight has been a debate rather than a documented exodus. But it stands as a live test that a working-class-first platform can actually govern a financial capital. Included here as an example of power used for, not against, ordinary people.