NYC Mayoral Candidate Zohran Mamdani Draws Fire for Anti-Israel Provocations & Radical Far-Left Agenda

NYC Mayoral Candidate Zohran Mamdani Draws Fire for Anti-Israel Provocations & Radical Far-Left Agenda

By: Fern Sidman

As the 2025 New York City mayoral race intensifies, one candidate is capturing headlines—and raising alarm bells—for more than just his campaign platform. Zohran Mamdani, a 33-year-old Democratic Assembly member from Queens and a self-described democratic socialist, is being labeled by political veterans as “more radical than the radical left,” according to a report that appeared on Wednesday in The New York Post.

While Mamdani is quickly gaining traction in terms of fundraising and public attention, political observers warn that his alignment with the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) and his anti-Israel, pro-protest record place him far outside the traditional political mainstream—even by New York City’s progressive standards.

Though relatively unknown to most New Yorkers just a few months ago, Mamdani has rapidly surged to second place in campaign fundraising—trailing only disgraced former Governor Andrew Cuomo, according to figures cited by The New York Post. Over the past two months alone, Mamdani has raised nearly $1 million, with more than 16,000 individual donors contributing to his campaign.

What’s more, over $500,000 of his contributions qualify for New York City’s eight-to-one public matching funds program, which means Mamdani is poised to receive roughly $4 million in taxpayer-financed campaign cash next month.

His political platform reads like a far-left wish list. The New York Post report indicated that he is advocating for free buses for all residents, free childcare citywide, a city-run grocery store system and rent freezes, regardless of market conditions.

While such policies might appeal to a niche segment of the city’s electorate, critics argue they are fiscally reckless, ideologically driven, and detached from the practical realities of urban governance.

Mamdani has also distinguished himself—not always favorably—through a string of public outbursts, arrests, and inflammatory legislative proposals, drawing concern even from veteran Democratic insiders.

As The New York Post report detailed, Mamdani was caught on camera recently clashing with New York State Police at the State Capitol, shouting down former acting ICE director Tom Homan in protest of federal immigration enforcement and the detention of Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia University student and anti-Israel activist. “How many more New Yorkers will you detain?” Mamdani shouted before being physically removed by police.

Just months earlier, in October 2024, Mamdani was arrested at a pro-Hamas rally outside Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s Brooklyn residence, following Hamas’s violent invasion of Israel on October 7, The New York Post report said.  His public posturing on the issue has done little to distinguish him from the DSA’s increasingly anti-Israel political platform—a stance that continues to alienate large swaths of New York’s Jewish community.

In 2023, Mamdani went even further, introducing a controversial bill called the “Not on Our Dime!: Ending New York Funding of Israeli Settler Violence Act”—legislation that sought to give the New York State Attorney General sweeping powers to dissolve charities or organizations supporting Jewish communities in the Judea and Samaria region of Israel. As per The New York Post report, the bill was seen by critics as overtly punitive toward pro-Israel advocacy groups and deeply troubling in both tone and substance.

Mamdani’s growing popularity among younger progressives and DSA loyalists has not gone unnoticed by political strategists, some of whom are sounding the alarm.

“He is in a category all by himself,” one seasoned political campaign veteran told The New York Post. “I’ve never seen someone so far to the left. He’s anti-Israel, he’s all up in the protests and violence. This is not how a mayoral candidate behaves.”

Another political observer noted while speaking with The New York Post, “Mamdani is dangerous because he’s someone who seems to be fairly charismatic and effectively engages with people. But anyone who has the backing of the far left and DSA is backwards.”

Despite repeated attempts by The New York Post to obtain a response from Mamdani’s campaign, no comment was provided.

As The New York Post also reported, Mamdani’s political activism appears deeply ingrained in his background. He is the son of acclaimed filmmaker Mira Nair, and he has carried forward a personal and ideological commitment to far-left causes throughout his career in public life.

One of the most striking revelations, as detailed by The New York Post, is the political worldview espoused by Mamdani’s father, Mahmood Mamdani, a Columbia University professor and chancellor of Kampala International University in Uganda. In a 2014 speech at Columbia, Mahmood called explicitly for the dismantling of the Jewish state, stating, “Jews can have a homeland in historic Palestine, but not a state.”

This ideological position, which mirrors the rhetoric often used by anti-Zionist movements, directly undermines the legitimacy of Israel as a sovereign state—a view that aligns disturbingly well with Zohran Mamdani’s own record in office and activism.

Further scrutiny has fallen on Mamdani’s mother, the acclaimed filmmaker Mira Nair, who was allegedly among the signatories of a controversial letter pressuring the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to ban Israeli actress Gal Gadot from presenting at this year’s Oscars. As reported by The New York Post, the open letter—signed by 21 Academy members and over 75 other filmmakers—claimed Gadot should be barred from the ceremony because she “openly and repeatedly expressed her support for Israel’s military actions against Palestinians.”

“This was disgusting,” one Hollywood insider told The New York Post, describing what many interpreted as a targeted campaign against an Israeli actress simply for standing with her country.

Despite his fringe politics, Mamdani’s mayoral campaign has gained extraordinary traction—especially in fundraising. He has amassed nearly $1 million in donations, with over $500,000 eligible for New York City’s 8-to-1 public matching funds program, according to The New York Post. The New York Post reported that this means Mamdani could receive up to $4 million in taxpayer money to amplify his divisive platform, which includes police defunding, unconditional amnesty for all undocumented immigrants, and housing transgender prisoners based on gender identity.

Such policies are not only fiscally questionable but also ideologically extreme, even by New York City standards.

In 2023, Mamdani participated in a hunger strike demanding a ceasefire in Gaza, portraying Israel’s defensive operations as unjustified, while often failing to publicly acknowledge Hamas’s role in initiating the violence—mirroring the DSA’s soft stance on terror groups and silence on antisemitic extremism.

Before entering elected office, Mamdani’s political roots were in grassroots campaigns for left-wing insurgent candidates, including Ross Barkan’s failed 2017 State Senate run and Tiffany Caban’s unsuccessful 2019 Queens DA race.

He was elected to represent Queens’ 36th District in the State Assembly in 2021. The report in The New York Post indicated that during the same year, he staged a 15-day hunger strike on behalf of the New York Taxi Workers Alliance, pushing for medallion debt relief—a cause rooted in economic justice but emblematic of his willingness to deploy extreme protest tactics to gain visibility.

On the cultural front, Mamdani has moonlighted as a self-described “B-list rapper” under the name Mr. Cardamom, even composing music for his mother’s 2016 film Queen of Katwe.

Mamdani was formally endorsed by the DSA in October 2024, a group whose platform includes divestment from Israel, sanctions against pro-Israel groups, defunding police, and support for Iran’s right to “defend itself” against Israel—as reported by The New York Post. That endorsement has drawn even more scrutiny, especially from those concerned about the rising normalization of antisemitic rhetoric within progressive circles.

As The New York Post report outlined, Zohran Mamdani is not just another progressive candidate—he is a standard-bearer for a deeply ideological movement that seeks to reshape New York’s institutions through the lens of radical socialism, anti-Israel dogma, and protest politics.

His ability to attract millions in campaign funds while pushing ideas far outside the mainstream raises difficult questions for a city already grappling with crime, fiscal strain, and community division.