Zahran Mamdani announced her all-female transfer team
Democratic Socialist Zahran Mamdani, 34, unveiled an all-female transition team led by Elana Leopold as executive director at a morning press conference in Queens.
New York Mayor-elect Zahran Mamdani announced a transition team to help implement what he called the city’s most ambitious policy platform in a generation.
The team also includes co-chairs Maria Torres-Springer, former first deputy mayor, Lina Khan, former chairman of the Federal Trade Commission; Grace Bonilla is the president and CEO of the United Way and Melanie Hartzog is the former deputy mayor for health and human services.
“In the coming months, my team and I will build a municipality capable of fulfilling the promises of this campaign,” Mamdani told reporters. “We will form a government that is as capable and compassionate, led with integrity, and willing to work as hard as the millions of New Yorkers who call this city home.”
“We owe it to this city to be ready to start working on January 1,” he said on Victory Day. “We have 57 days and these 57 days are to start the preparation work.”
With his victory, Mamdani will become the first Muslim mayor of the city, the first mayor from South Asia, the first mayor born in Africa and the youngest mayor in more than a century.
New York’s new administration faces major obstacles, including Donald Trump, who has repeatedly threatened to cut off federal funding from the city if Mamdani takes office. The president, who is also from Queens, wrote in a post on his social platform Truth that if Mamdani wins the mayoral election, “it is highly unlikely that I will allocate any federal funds to New York City other than the minimum required.” He often calls this democratic socialist a “communist”.
According to a 2025 analysis from the state auditor, New York City’s budget for fiscal year 2026 includes approximately $7.4 billion in federal funding, or 6.4% of total expenditures.
The mayor-elect acknowledged some significant challenges ahead, including navigating the municipal bureaucracy and working under a hostile Trump administration, but Mamdani said he is confident in his ability to deliver on his campaign promises.
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