Mamdani accuses Cuomo of 'Islamophobic rhetoric' as contentious NYC mayoral race comes down to the wire

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Zohran Mamdani delivers address on Islamophobia with days until the mayoral election

New York City Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani addressed his opponents' "Islamophobic rhetoric" on Friday, Oct. 24, 2025.

On the eve of early voting in New York City, Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani accused independent candidate Andrew Cuomo of "Islamophobic rhetoric" after the former governor joined a radio show where the host speculated that Mamdani would be "cheering" if New York City faced another 9/11-style attack.

Outside the Islamic Cultural Center in the Bronx on Friday afternoon, Mamdani seized on the latest campaign trail controversy as an opportunity to condemn what his campaign described as the "renewed wave of Islamophobic rhetoric and fear-mongering."

"While my opponents in this race have brought hatred to the forefront, this is just a glimpse of what so many have to endure every day across the city," Mamdani said. "And while it would be easy for us to say that this is not who we are as a city, we know the truth. This is who we have allowed ourselves to become."

During an appearance on WABC's "Sid & Friends in the Morning" on Thursday, Cuomo questioned Mamdani's ability to lead the city through a crisis situation, if elected. When host Sid Rosenberg implied that Mamdani would be "cheering."

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New York City Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani (left) criticized independent candidate former Gov. Andrew Cuomo (right) for his "Islamophobic rhetoric" on Friday, Oct. 24, 2025.  (Richard Drew/AP Photo; Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP Photo)

"Any given moment, there's a crisis, and people's lives are at stake. God forbid, there's another 9/11. Can you imagine Mamdani in the seat?" Cuomo asked the host. 

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"He'd be cheering," Rosenberg retorted. 

"That's another problem," said Cuomo, before returning to his hypothetical question: "But could you imagine that?"

During a Mamdani campaign event in Manhattan later on Thursday, a reporter asked the leading mayoral candidate if Cuomo's comments were Islamophobic.

"Yes, I believe that they were," Mamdani said, before adding, "We're speaking about a former governor who, in his final moments in public life, is engaging in rhetoric that is not only Islamophobic, not only racist, it's also disgusting."

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That afternoon, Cuomo was endorsed by Mayor Eric Adams, who told reporters that his reason for doing so, in part, was to fight "Islamic extremism" in New York City.

"I don't know what is wrong with people. You see what's playing out in other countries because of Islamic extremism. Not Muslims, let's not mix this up. But those Islamic extremisms that are burning churches in Nigeria, that are destroying communities in Germany, that have taken over the logical thinking, and that's what I'm fighting for," Adams said Thursday.

The Mamdani campaign called Adams' remarks "Islamophobic reasoning."

In response to both comments, the leading mayoral candidate wiped tears on Friday, while flanked by members of the Islamic Cultural Center, as he told the story of Muslims, like his aunt, whom Mamdani said stopped riding the subway after Sept. 11, 2001, because she "did not feel safe in her hijab."

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"We know that in less than two weeks we will say goodbye to a disgraced former governor and our current indicted mayor," Mamdani said. "The bigger question is whether we are willing to say goodbye to something much larger than either of these two men," Mamdani said.

"It is whether we are willing to say goodbye to anti-Muslim sentiment that has grown so endemic in our city that when we hear it, we know not whether the words were spoken by a Republican or a Democrat," Mamdani continued. "We know only that it was spoken in the language of the politics of the city. In an era of ever diminishing bipartisanship, it seems that Islamophobia has emerged as one of the few areas of agreement."

With less than two weeks until Election Day, Mamdani on Thursday criticized Cuomo for his "closing argument."

"Andrew Cuomo's message is to smear and slander the first Muslim candidate on the verge of leading this city, to look at a city where 1 in 8 New Yorkers are Muslim and say that, by virtue of your faith, you are worthy of suspicion," Mamdani added.

New York City Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani delivers remarks in the Bronx, New York City, on Friday, Oct. 24, 2025.  (Fox News Digital/Deirdre Heavey)

When pressed by reporters during the endorsement event Thursday, Cuomo clarified that he was not the one who made the comment that Mamdani would be "cheering" if there was another terrorist attack like Sept. 11, 2001.

Cuomo hosted a press conference days before the 24th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in New York City, where speakers criticized Mamdani for associating with a Twitch streamer, Hasan Piker, who once declared, "America deserved 9/11."

"I have a problem with the fact that Zohran pals around with Hasan Piker," Cuomo clarified Thursday.

The latest Fox News survey, conducted Oct. 10-14, revealed that Mamdani has a substantial lead in the race. According to the poll, Mamdani has a 21-point lead among New York City registered voters with 49% of voters backing Mamdani, while 28% go for Cuomo and 13% favor Sliwa.

Independent candidate former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo speaks during a mayoral debate, Thursday, Oct. 16, 2025, in New York City.  (AP Photo/Angelina Katsanis, Pool)

Mamdani also rose above the 50% threshold among likely voters, garnering 52% support, while Cuomo picked up 28%, and Sliwa received just 14%.

If Mamdani wins the mayoral election on Nov. 4, he will become the first Muslim mayor of New York City. 

Religion has become a defining issue in the mayoral race, as Jewish New Yorkers have rejected Mamdani's positions on Israel, including calling the war in Gaza a "genocide" and his refusal to recognize Israel as a Jewish state.

This week, prominent New York City rabbis joined more than 650 rabbis to sign "A Rabbinic Call to Action: Defending the Jewish Future," declaring their position that Jewish Americans "cannot remain silent" on discrimination against Jewish people.

Rabbi Joshua M. Davidson, Temple Emanu-El’s senior rabbi, told Fox News Digital that his concern about Mamdani's candidacy "is absolutely not about Islamophobia."

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"It is about legitimate alarm over Assemblymember Mamdani's positions, and I think it's important to draw that distinction," Davidson said. "New York is the most culturally diverse city in the world, and we pride ourselves on that diversity. And as I wrote, I think it would be an extraordinary achievement for New York to elect a Muslim mayor. But Mr. Mamdani causes me great concern, and he has caused many in the Jewish community great fear."

Rosenberg and Cuomo did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's comment request.