Democratic New York City mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani faced intense scrutiny during his first public press conference after a deadly Midtown Manhattan mass shooting claimed four lives, including NYPD Officer Didarul Islam. Pressed repeatedly on his past calls to “defund the police,” Mamdani refused to accept responsibility for rhetoric critics say has fomented distrust in law enforcement.
Mamdani, who was abroad in Uganda at the time of the attack, returned immediately for a visit with the slain officer’s family. At the presser, he asserted that his comments made during the 2020 protests were born out of “frustration” following George Floyd’s death, and insisted they do not reflect his current campaign positions.
The candidate categorically denied running on a “defund the police” platform but reaffirmed his commitment to disbanding the NYPD’s Strategic Response Group (SRG), a unit responsible for responding to riots and high-risk incidents, including the shooting in Midtown Manhattan. Mamdani argued for shifting social-service responsibilities, such as mental health and domestic violence calls, to non-police professionals.
Critics, including former Governor Andrew Cuomo and incumbent Mayor Eric Adams, seized on Mamdani’s delayed and limited response to the tragedy and his inconsistent record on public safety. Adams has condemned Mamdani’s plan to dismantle the SRG as “extremely dangerous,” calling the unit essential to handling high-risk emergencies.
At the same press conference, Mamdani emphasized that his campaign centers on a reimagined public safety strategy. He proposed preserving overall NYPD staffing levels, reducing overtime, and investing $1 billion in a new Department of Community Safety, to better serve social needs without overburdening police resources.
“What I am speaking of is a vision that will not only address public safety, but also keep officers in this very police department and will ensure that they can actually respond to the crimes that are being committed in this city,” Mamdani shared.
While Mamdani remains the Democratic frontrunner, opponents argue this crisis reveals fundamental flaws in a platform characterized by anti-police rhetoric and symbolic policy shifts. As the mayoral race progresses, his stance on public safety will remain under intense scrutiny.
