NEW YORK's incoming mayor Zohran Mamdani has chosen an all-female transition team to help prepare his administration before he takes office on January 1.
The 34-year-old democratic socialist announced the group at a press conference in Queens on Wednesday (5), naming Elana Leopold as executive director of the team that will help shape his administration over the next 57 days, reported the Guardian.
The team includes several high-profile figures from Democratic politics and city government. Lina Khan, who led the Federal Trade Commission under president Joe Biden, will serve as co-chair alongside three other women with deep experience in New York City government.
Khan gained national attention for her tough approach to big business during her time at the FTC, winning admirers across the political spectrum. Her appointment signals Mamdani's intention to bring bold reformers into his team as he prepares to lead America's largest city.
The other co-chairs are Maria Torres-Springer, a former first deputy mayor, Grace Bonilla, who heads the United Way charity, and Melanie Hartzog, who previously served as deputy mayor for health and human services.
"In the coming months, I and my team will build a city hall capable of delivering on the promises of this campaign," Mamdani told reporters. "We will form an administration that is equal parts capable and compassionate."
Mamdani defeated former governor Andrew Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa in Tuesday's (4) election. His victory makes him New York's first Muslim mayor, its first of South Asian heritage, its first born in Africa and its youngest in more than a century.
The mayor-elect ran on a progressive platform including rent freezes, free buses, universal childcare and city-run grocery shops, all funded by higher taxes on corporations and wealthy residents.
The transition team will begin announcing deputy mayors and agency commissioners in the coming days. Mamdani said some appointees would be familiar names while others would be newcomers, but all would share a "commitment to solving old problems with new solutions".
The incoming administration faces significant challenges, including opposition from president Donald Trump, who has threatened to withhold federal funding from New York if Mamdani took office. The city's budget includes approximately £5.8 billion in federal funding.
"We owe it to this city to be ready on January 1 to start delivering," Mamdani was quoted as saying. "We have 57 days and those are 57 days to start to do the work of preparing."
During a visit to Sunway University in Kuala Lumpur
