Former US President Barack Obama held a private phone call Saturday with New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani, offering praise for his campaign and pledging to serve as a “sounding board” if Mamdani wins Tuesday’s election, the New York Times reported.
The roughly 30-minute conversation, not previously reported, was described by two individuals familiar with the call.
Obama expressed interest in Mamdani’s success beyond the election and discussed the challenges of staffing a new administration and implementing Mamdani’s affordability agenda. “Your campaign has been impressive to watch,” Obama told Mamdani, according to the sources.
While Obama has not formally endorsed Mamdani, consistent with his practice of avoiding municipal races, the call marks his second outreach since Mamdani’s primary victory over former Governor Andrew Cuomo.
Mamdani thanked Obama for the call and said he drew inspiration from Obama’s speech on race for his own remarks on Islamophobia, according to the New York Times.
A spokeswoman for Obama declined to comment, while Mamdani’s campaign said he appreciated the conversation and Obama’s support for “a new kind of politics.”
Mamdani has faced criticism over his far-left positions and his anti-Israel stance. This includes his criticism of Israel on October 8, 2023 - just one day after the Hamas massacre in southern Israel, as well as his refusal to condemn the phrase “globalize the intifada”.
He also recently declared that he would stop using the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA)’s working definition of antisemitism.
In addition, Mamdani has repeatedly accused Israel of war crimes in its battle against Hamas in Gaza, and has vowed to arrest Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he visits New York City, citing the International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant issued against Netanyahu - even though the US is not a member of the ICC.
He has also come under fire after publicly campaigning with Brooklyn Imam Siraj Wahhaj, a figure named as an unindicted co-conspirator in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.
According to a Fox News poll released this past Thursday, Mamdani holds a 16-point lead among likely voters, with 47% support. Cuomo follows with 31%, while Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa trails at 15%.
A Quinnipiac University poll released one day earlier showed that Jewish voters overwhelmingly favor former Cuomo over Mamdani.
According to the survey, 60% of Jewish respondents support Cuomo, while only 16% support Mamdani. Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa received 12% support among Jews. The remaining respondents were either undecided, preferred another candidate, or declined to answer.
The poll also found that 75% of Jews hold an unfavorable view of Mamdani, compared to just 15% who view him favorably. Cuomo received a 39% favorable rating among Jews, with 50% viewing him unfavorably.