New York, US – Thousands of people, including political figures, joined the new mayor of New York, Zohran Mamdani, in his inauguration in front of City Hall, despite the frozen streets and temperatures below zero.
The ceremony, which began around 1:30 pm local time, included the investiture of Mamdani and two other elected representatives: the NYC Public Advocate, Jumaane Williams, and the city comptroller, Mark Levine.
Around 4,000 people were officially invited, but the new mayor’s team, who held a private swearing-in on Wednesday night, decided the event should be a community celebration in which citizens could participate.
Mamdani, 34, was the last of the three politicians to be invested, guided by Senator Bernie Sanders.
Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was in charge of the opening.
”I also ask that we consider today an inauguration for each one of us, to the nearly 8.5 million New Yorkers who make up the greatest city on earth, because it is the people of New York City who have chosen historic, ambitious leadership in response to untenable and unprecedented times,” she said.
Ocasio-Cortez, who is similar in age to Mamdani and also belongs to the more leftist wing of the Democratic Party, highlighted that he is the first Muslim mayor, the first immigrant in nearly a century, and the youngest in several generations, but he aspires to be “a mayor for all of us.”
During his speech, Mamdani pledged to improve the condition of the most vulnerable people in the city.
“We may not always succeed, but we will never be accused of lacking the courage to try,” he pledged.
The new mayor also refused to scale back promises of free child care and expanded bus service, insisting he will work to deliver.
“I ran on an agenda, and I plan on making it happen,” he said.
Mamdani closed his intervention asking: “Who does New York belong to?”
To which he answered that for too long the city has served “the wealthy and well connected,” and promised his administration would confront the imbalance.
Among the political figures attending the event were the two previous mayors, Eric Adams and Bill de Blasio.
Senator Chuck Schumer, State Attorney Letitia James, or Harlem Councilman Yusef Salaam were also seen during the retransmission of the event.
The event began with an interpretation of the American anthem by actor Javier Muñoz, known for his starring role in the Broadway musical “Hamilton.”
It also included a recital by the poet Cornelius Eady, who expressly composed a piece titled “Proof.”
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