NYC Mayor-elect Mamdani appointees tied to anti-Zionist groups, ADL finds
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At least 20 percent of New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani’s executive appointments are linked to groups deemed anti-Zionist, according to a Monday report by the Anti-Defamation League (ADL).
The report found that more than 80 of Mamdani’s more than 400 transitional and administrative appointments either had ties to such groups or had a “documented history of making anti-Israel statements.”
The organization said Mamdani’s Transition Committee appointees include Students for Justice in Palestine, a pro-Palestinian university activism network; Jewish Voice for Peace, American anti-Semitic Zionist organization; and Within Our Lifetime, a New York City-based anti-Zionist group “known for leading protests outside synagogues.”
For example, the ADL said at least four appointees had ties to Louis Farrakhan, the antisemitic leader of the Nation of Islam. Appointee Jacques Léandre reportedly attended a conference where Farrakhan condemned “the Jews and their forces.”
ADL CHIEF WARNED THAT NYC MAYOR ZOHRAN MAMDANI PRESENTS A ‘CLEAR AND PRESENT DANGER’ TO THE JEWISH COMMUNITY
Mayor-Elect Zohran Mamdani speaks with members of the media at Flushing Meadows Corona Park in the Queens borough of New York on Wednesday, November 5, 2025. (Adam Gray/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Several other names were also mentioned, appointed for statements supporting or legitimizing violence against Israel and the October 7 attacks. According to the ADL, Kazi Fouzia posted on Facebook hours after the attacks, “Resistance [sic] It was justified when people were preoccupied with video footage of the anti-Israel protest that took place in Manhattan that day.
The report went on to identify other appointees who openly expressed hostility towards Zionism.
Examples include Fahd Ahmed, who said “Zionism is racism”; Ruha Benjamin, who signed the declaration stating that Israel was “ideologically founded on Jewish superiority”; “The genocidal ideology of Zionism” said Lisa Ohta; and Mohammed Karim Chowdhury, who shared a post claiming “Zionists are worse than Nazis,” the ADL reported.
MAMDANI’S FATHER SAYS COLUMBIA IS ‘TARGETING’ ANTI-ISRAEL STUDENTS WITH ANTI-SEMITISM
A protester waves a Palestinian flag during a protest on college campuses in Washington, DC, on March 23, 2025. (ANDREW THOMAS/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)
The organization also identified Zakiyah Shaakir-Ansari, who allegedly posted a photo of herself at a camp in front of a banner that read “Long Live the Resistance” in front of a banner with an inverted red triangle, a symbol associated with Hamas.
The report also notes that at least 12 of the spring 2024 appointees have publicly expressed support for anti-Israel campus camps, and at least five have personally participated in protests. The ADL highlighted Gianpaolo Baiocchi, who was reportedly arrested at the NYU camp, and later maintained there was no hate speech. The ADL disputes this claim, citing leaflets distributed in the camp calling for “Death to Israeli Property” and “Death to America.”
Demonstrators raise the “Free Palestine” flag on October 4, 2025. (Dan Gainor)
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Mamdani, who will take office on January 1, has repeatedly emphasized that he is against antisemitism.
The ADL noted that many appointees did not express concerns and highlighted that at least 25 individuals, including Rabbi Joe Potasnik, Félix Matos Rodríguez, Wayne Ho, John King and Jerry Goldfeder, expressed support for the Jewish community. But the organization said it remains concerned about Mamdani’s team overall.
“Many of Mayor-elect Mamdani’s Transition Committee appointments are inconsistent with his campaign commitments to prioritize the safety of New York’s Jewish community,” the ADL wrote in the report.
Fox News Digital has reached out to Mamdani for further comment.
