It might almost read like a piece of satire — a sharp bit of political irony — if the implications weren’t so serious.
Zohran Mamdani, the newly elected mayor of New York City, has begun his expected victory lap following his decisive win in Tuesday night’s special election.
Mamdani defeated independent candidate Andrew Cuomo, with Republican Curtis Sliwa finishing a distant third. Former Mayor Eric Adams also appeared on the ballot, though he had officially withdrawn from the race beforehand.
Wasting no time, Mamdani took to X to celebrate his victory and outline his initial transition plans.
But viewers quickly noticed something striking — and unintentionally ironic — in the video he posted. See if you can spot it yourself (and no, it’s not just the painfully forced grin) in the clip below:
Thank you, New York City. Together we made history.
Now let’s get to work. https://t.co/G7F2sbda74 pic.twitter.com/GQABMqJHgn
— Zohran Kwame Mamdani (@ZohranKMamdani) November 5, 2025
“Good Morning, New York City”: Mamdani’s Victory Message Turns Into a Fundraising Pitch
“Good morning, New York City,” Zohran Mamdani began, flashing his most polished, Cheshire Cat grin. “Thank you. Last night we made history, and today we begin the work of building a new administration. Welcome to the transition.”
From there, the newly minted mayor-elect launched into a string of familiar campaign buzzwords — phrases like “make New York City affordable,” “make government accountable,” “excellence, integrity, and a hunger,” and “transparency.”
“New Yorkers deserve a government they can trust,” Mamdani added. And no — that wasn’t the punchline.
The joke came moments later.
“Oh, and uh, one more thing,” Mamdani said near the end of his video message. “Remember how I told you a few months ago to stop sending us money? You can start again. This transition requires staff, research, and an infrastructure that can meet this moment, and it will be made possible by the people who built and believe in this movement. So I hope you will make a donation.”
Oh, boy.
Knock, knock.
Who’s there?
Share.
Share who?
Share everything — it’s only fair, comrade. Now donate some money.
If it weren’t so serious, the whole thing might almost be funny. After all, this is the incoming mayor of the largest city in the United States, and his first official act as mayor-elect was to ask supporters for more cash.
To be fair, soliciting donations during a transition period isn’t necessarily unprecedented. For instance, former Mayor Eric Adams didn’t solicit funds during his 2021 transition, but practices can vary.
Still, the optics here are hard to ignore. A self-proclaimed socialist wins office by promising a laundry list of “free” programs — then turns around less than 24 hours later to request financial contributions.
That irony is hard to top.
Or, at least it would be funny, if Mamdani weren’t about to take the reins of New York City on January 1.
So, before the laughter fades, perhaps Mamdani’s supporters should take one crucial lesson from their new mayor’s first day on the job: Nothing is ever truly “free.”
Someone, somewhere, always has to pay.
And this time, Mamdani’s asking you to do it.
