Washington: US President Donald Trump has responded sharply to New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani’s victory speech, describing it as “very angry” and warning the 34-year-old Democrat to cooperate with Washington or risk losing federal support, Reuters reported.
Speaking to Fox News, Trump said Mamdani’s speech in Brooklyn on Tuesday night was “certainly angry toward me” and cautioned the mayor-elect to “be very nice” to the president. “I am the one that sort of has to approve a lot of things coming to him, so he’s off to a bad start,” The Indian Express quoted Trump as saying.
Despite the criticism, Trump softened his tone later, saying he wants Mamdani “to do well” because he loves New York. However, he reiterated past remarks labelling Mamdani a “communist”, adding, “For a thousand years, communism has not worked, the concept of communism has not worked, I tend to doubt it’s going to work this time.”
Mamdani, who will become the youngest mayor in New York City’s history, directly addressed Trump during his victory speech, declaring, I have “four words for him: Turn the volume up.” He added, “To get to any of us, you will have to get through all of us.”
The election saw record turnout, with over 2 million votes cast. Mamdani defeated a crowded field including Trump, independent candidate and former Governor Andrew Cuomo, backed by Elon Musk, and Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa. The result has given Democrats fresh momentum ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.