JD Vance criticizes Mamdani over 9/11 comment during campaign event

Vice President J.D. Vance criticized New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani on Saturday, writing to X that the “real victim of 9/11” was her aunt, according to the Democrat.

Vance made the announcement as early voting began in New York City on Saturday; Here Mamdani, the frontrunner in the race, is trying to fend off rivals Andrew Cuomo and Curtis Sliwa.

“I want to speak in memory of my aunt who stopped taking the subway after 9/11 because she didn’t feel safe in her hijab,” Mamdani said in a clip of a campaign event that Vance shared on Friday.

“According to Zohran, the real victim of 9/11 was his (allegedly) evil-looking aunt,” Vance said.

EARLY VOTING CONTINUES IN NEW YORK, NEW JERSEY, Amid HOT MAYOR AND GOVERNOR RACES

Mamdani also said Friday: “I want to talk to New York Muslims who work for our city, whether it’s teaching in our schools or walking the beat for the NYPD, who sacrifice every day for the city they call home, only to see their leaders spit in their faces.”

“I want to talk to every child here who grows up marked as the other, who feels like they carry a stain that can never be cleansed, chosen at random in a way that never feels random. Having grown up in the shadow of 9/11, I know what it means to live in this city with an undercurrent of doubt,” Mamdani added.

Fox News Digital has reached out to the Mamdani campaign for reaction to Vance’s comment.

SOCIAL MEDIA SHARED AFTER CUOMO, MAMDANI KILLED EACH OTHER DURING THE LAST DEBATE: ‘THE MASK IS OUT’

Andrew Cuomo shakes hands with Zohran Mamdani during the mayoral debate this week. (Angelina Katsanis)

Mamdani accused Cuomo of “Islamophobic rhetoric” this week after the former governor appeared on a radio show and the host predicted Mamdani would “cheer” if New York City faced a 9/11-like attack.

Appearing on WABC’s “Sid & Friends in the Morning” on Thursday, Cuomo questioned Mamdani’s ability to lead the city in a crisis.

“A crisis breaks out at any moment and people’s lives are in danger. God forbid, there is another 9/11. Can you imagine Mamdani on the sofa?” Cuomo asked host Sid Rosenberg.

“He would cheer,” Rosenberg responded.

“That’s another problem,” Cuomo said, before returning to his hypothetical question: “But could you imagine that?”

During a Mamdani campaign event in Manhattan later Thursday, a reporter asked Mamdani whether Cuomo’s comments were Islamophobic.

People cast their votes during early voting in New York on Saturday, October 25, 2025. (Olga Fedorova/AP)

CLICK TO DOWNLOAD FOX NEWS APPLICATION

“Yes, I believe they are,” Mamdani said, adding: “We are talking about a former governor who, in his last moments in public life, used rhetoric that was not only Islamophobic, not racist, but also disgusting.”

Fox News Digital’s Deirdre Heavey contributed to this report.