Agency
Zohran Kwame Mamdani, the son of prominent Ugandan academic Prof. Mahmood Mamdani, is the Mayor-Elect of New York, the largest city in America.
Mamdani beat his closest challenger, former New York state governor Andrew Cuomo, and Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa.
Mamdani’s victory was announced at around 6 am Uganda time after counting most of the votes.
At 33 years old, Mamdani is the youngest person to have been elected mayor in the history of New York City. He is also the first Muslim to ever hold that position.
Mamdani beat Cuomo in the Democratic Party primaries but insisted on contesting as an independent.
In the winding days of the campaign, President Donald Trump and Elon Musk, two of the most powerful men in America, all lined up behind Cuomo.
Trump warned that if Mamdani wins, he will be forced to cut funding to New York.
However, this fear-mongering has not stopped New Yorkers from electing Mamdani.
Mamdani is the only child of Prof. Mahmood Mamdani and Mira Nair, a renowned American filmmaker.
Prof. Mamdani, until 2022, was the Director of the Makerere Institute of Social Research, a position he had held since 2010.
