Mamdani, New York mayor-elect, ready to work with Trump despite disagreements

New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani said he has “many disagreements” with President Donald Trump, but is willing to put those differences aside for the good of his city.

“I intend to make it clear to President Trump that I will work with him on any program that benefits New Yorkers. If a program harms New Yorkers, I will also be the first to say something,” Mamdani said Thursday during a press conference.

“I know that for tens of thousands of New Yorkers, this meeting is between two very different candidates that they voted for, for the same reason,” he added. “They wanted a leader who could address the cost of living crisis that is preventing working people from being able to afford to live in this city.”

The mayor-elect is scheduled to meet with Trump at the White House on Friday.

Mamdani vows to challenge Trump in fiery final march from Brooklyn Bridge to City Hall before Election Day.

New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani and President Donald Trump will meet at the White House on Friday, November 21, 2025. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images and AP Photo/Matt Slocum)

Trump has repeatedly criticized Mamdani for his political views, including calling him a “crazy communist” after his election day victory.

In the weeks leading up to the mayoral election, the president threatened to withdraw federal funding from New York City if Mamdani won. Afterward, Trump said of the city that he would “help them out a little bit.”

Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani said that despite his political differences with President Donald Trump, he would work to benefit New Yorkers. (Adam Gray/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

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President Donald Trump sharply criticized Zohran Mamdani before New York’s mayoral election, but has since said he would help his hometown. (Mark Schiefelbein/AP)

Mamdani, a self-described democratic socialist, said during Thursday’s news conference at City Hall Park in Lower Manhattan that a key part of the meeting was to discuss the issue of affordability.

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“When we talk about the affordability crisis, we’re talking about one in four New Yorkers living in poverty, one in five who are struggling to pay $2.90 to ride the bus. New Yorkers, for whom the daily acts of life are becoming more and more difficult to afford,” Mamdani told reporters.

In a brief exchange with Fox News’ Alexis McAdams, Mamdani said he was ready for the White House meeting with Trump. When asked how he would react if the president “teared you apart” on camera, Mamdani replied: “I will be ready to deal with whatever happens.”

When another reporter brought up Trump’s tense exchange in the Oval Office with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in February, Mamdani responded: “I will stand up for New Yorkers. Every day.”