New York Citys newly elected Mayor Zohran Mamdani is already facing a revolt from the very left-wing activists who helped put him in office, as they now accuse him of betraying his radical campaign promises on policing.
According to the Gateway Pundit, angry demonstrators recently descended on Gracie Mansion, the official mayoral residence in Carl Schurz Park on the Upper East Side, to vent their frustration over what they see as Mamdanis retreat from his anti-police agenda. Many New Yorkers who favor law and order may quietly welcome the fact that he appears less extreme in office than on the campaign trail, but his progressive base is making clear they feel double-crossed.
The confrontation outside his residence unfolded at night, when protesters crowded around the gate and used a megaphone to denounce the man they once championed as a vehicle for dismantling traditional policing. One furious activist shouted, We was with you, Zohran! We voted for you, Zohran! We advocated for you, Zohran! and continued, You aint did nothing but get up in there and lie to us! You lied, Zohran! Shame, Zohran!
Their anger centers on Mamdanis failure to deliver on sweeping promises to weaken the NYPD and hand unprecedented power to the Civilian Complaint Review Board (CCRB), an unelected body that already investigates complaints and recommends discipline against officers. A man with a megaphone was filmed outside Mamdanis home, blasting, The first lie was CCRB, Zohran! CCRB should have the final say, Zohran! while the crowd punctuated his remarks with repeated cries of Shame!
The Gateway Pundit had previously highlighted Mamdanis radical anti-police rhetoric before his November election, including his flirtation with replacing officers with social workers for certain crimes, a notion he began to walk back almost as soon as he secured power. Now, the same activists who cheered those proposals are furious that he appears unwilling to fully strip authority from the NYPD commissioner and hand it to the CCRB.
Per the Daily News, While still a candidate, Mamdani said he would as mayor empower the board which investigates and prosecutes misconduct complaints against NYPD officers to get the final say on what sort of disciplinary action should be taken against cops found guilty of wrongdoing. The paper noted that under the current system, the board offers recommendations to the NYPD commissioner, who then gets to decide what punishment to mete out.
Mamdani was even more explicit on the campaign trail, declaring in early October, What I would do is ensure that the recommendations of the CCRB be understood to be the final voice of the question of accountability. That pledge thrilled anti-police activists but alarmed New Yorkers who believe discipline over law enforcement should remain in the hands of accountable officials, not an outside board insulated from voters.
Once in office, however, Mamdani quickly signaled a more cautious approach, especially after announcing that NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch would remain in her post under his administration. In the wake of that decision, he backed away from his earlier absolutist stance, telling the Daily News, What I believe is that the CCRBs recommendations should be taken seriously, that we should ensure theyre able to make those recommendations time and again.
For many on the left, that shift sounds like a classic political retreat, proof that even their preferred candidates cannot fully implement the anti-police agenda they demand. For residents who value public safety, it is a reminder that elections have consequencesand that even a partial check on radical reforms may be the only thing standing between New York City and a deeper slide into lawlessness that President Trump and other conservatives have long warned about in Democrat-run cities.
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