By: Fern Sidman

The political tremors from Zohran Mamdani’s stunning mayoral victory continued to reverberate through New York City on Wednesday morning, as FDNY Commissioner Robert Tucker tendered his resignation just hours after the election results were announced. According to a report in The New York Daily News, Tucker’s decision marks the first high-level departure in what sources say could soon become an exodus of senior officials from the Adams administration, particularly among those with close ties to law enforcement and pro-Israel advocacy circles.

In an email sent to outgoing Mayor Eric Adams less than twelve hours after Mamdani’s triumph over former Governor Andrew Cuomo and Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa, Tucker announced his intent to step down effective December 19. His resignation letter, obtained by The New York Daily News, expressed his intent to ensure a “smooth and responsible transition,” but sources close to the commissioner confirmed that his decision was driven by profound unease over the incoming mayor’s worldview and rhetoric.

“Between now and then, I will continue to lead the greatest fire department in the world and will ensure an orderly transition,” Tucker wrote in the letter.

According to a senior FDNY source quoted in The New York Daily News report, Tucker — who is Jewish, a proud Zionist, and a vocal supporter of Israel — concluded that he could not, in good conscience, serve under Zohran Mamdani, the 34-year-old democratic socialist whose campaign was marred by his upfront antisemitism and deep hostility toward Israel.

“Mamdani’s victory sent shockwaves through the ranks,” one FDNY insider told The New York Daily News. “For someone like Commissioner Tucker, who has strong moral convictions and deep ties to the Jewish community, remaining in his position would have been untenable.”

Throughout the campaign, Mamdani drew condemnation from Jewish organizations and political figures for his past statements, including his refusal to denounce the slogan “globalize the intifada” — a chant widely understood as a call for violence against Jews worldwide — and his labeling of Israel’s defensive military operations as “genocidal.”

As The New York Daily News report observed, Tucker’s decision reflects the anxiety gripping many Jewish and pro-Israel leaders in the city following Mamdani’s rise to power. His election, though celebrated by progressive activists, has also deepened fears of an ideological shift in City Hall — one that could alienate the city’s Jewish community, undermine its relationship with Israel, and strain long-standing partnerships with public safety institutions.

Sources told The New York Daily News that Deputy Mayor for Public Safety Kaz Daughtry — a former NYPD deputy commissioner and one of Adams’ closest confidants — is also expected to resign in the coming days. Daughtry, who has acted as a key liaison between City Hall and the Trump administration on security and counterterrorism matters, reportedly recognizes that his tenure would not survive under Mamdani’s leadership.

“Daughtry’s identity is tied to Adams and to law enforcement,” said one senior official quoted in The New York Daily News report. “It’s no secret that Mamdani’s administration will bring in its own people — and that those people will come from a completely different political universe.”

The New York Daily News report noted that several other senior aides and policy advisers aligned with Adams are also rumored to be preparing resignations. Many of them view Mamdani’s election as a rejection of the pragmatic, center-left governance that Adams represented in favor of an aggressive ideological experiment — one rooted in democratic socialism, anti-capitalism, and identity politics.

Robert Tucker’s resignation caps an accomplished, albeit brief, tenure at the helm of the Fire Department of New York. Appointed by Mayor Adams in August 2024 to succeed Commissioner Laura Kavanagh, Tucker made history as the first Jewish FDNY commissioner in over half a century.

A seasoned public servant and private sector leader, Tucker is the CEO of a private security firm and a longstanding board member of the FDNY Foundation, the official non-profit partner of the department. His appointment was initially hailed as a bridge between public service and private innovation — a strategic pick for a department that has faced chronic underfunding, staffing shortages, and political turbulence.

Yet, as The New York Daily News reported, his nomination was not without controversy. Just weeks before his appointment, eight employees from Tucker’s firm had made small, same-day contributions to Mayor Adams’ reelection campaign — each donating $200, a sum that could have been significantly amplified by the city’s public matching funds program. The Campaign Finance Board (CFB) raised red flags, suggesting the contributions might have been solicited without proper disclosure.

Although the matter was ultimately overshadowed by Adams’ later federal corruption indictment, which led the CFB to withhold all matching funds from his campaign, the episode cast a brief shadow over Tucker’s otherwise sterling reputation.

In a poignant twist, Tucker tendered his resignation just as he was en route to Israel for a planned visit with the Israel Fire and Rescue Authority. The trip, arranged months earlier, was meant to deepen operational cooperation between the FDNY and its Israeli counterparts — particularly in emergency preparedness and counterterror response.

As The New York Daily News report highlighted, Tucker’s travel drew attention to his deep personal and professional ties to Israel — ties that stand in stark contrast to the anti-Israel positions espoused by Mayor-elect Mamdani and his political allies. FDNY officials said Tucker intends to address his decision publicly upon his return, but his inner circle made clear that the symbolism of his departure is impossible to miss.

“It’s no coincidence that he resigned while on his way to Israel,” one senior firefighter told The New York Daily News. “For him, it’s about values — standing with the Jewish people, standing with Israel, and refusing to serve under someone who won’t.”

Mamdani’s election as the first Muslim and South Asian mayor of New York City has been heralded by progressives as a triumph of diversity and generational change. But as The New York Daily News has chronicled, his victory has also unleashed deep unease across many of the city’s core institutions — from law enforcement and emergency services to the business and philanthropic communities.

Critics warn that Mamdani’s platform — which includes free public transit, a rent freeze, and a steep tax hike on millionaires — could spell economic disaster for a city already burdened by deficits and declining private investment.

For the FDNY and NYPD, however, the concerns are more immediate. “This isn’t just about politics,” one official told The New York Daily News. “It’s about whether City Hall will have our backs the next time we face a crisis.”

Tucker’s departure — and the anticipated wave of resignations that may follow — marks the symbolic end of the Adams era and the dawn of a new and uncertain chapter in New York governance.

His resignation letter, though measured in tone, reads like an epitaph for a vanishing vision of pragmatic leadership. “The FDNY is more than a department,” Tucker wrote. “It is a family — one that has protected this city through every storm and every tragedy. I leave knowing that the men and women of this department will continue to embody courage, honor, and selfless service.”

As The New York Daily News report observed, his words resonated as both tribute and warning — a reminder that New York’s resilience has always depended on the character of those who lead it.

With Tucker stepping down, Daughtry poised to follow, and Mamdani preparing to take office amid ideological turmoil, the city stands on the threshold of profound transformation — one that could redefine not just its politics, but its very soul.