Zohran Mamdani speaking during the public swearing in ceremony on January 1, 2026, at City Hall in New York.

By Nicholas Fandos

There were South Asian aunties with hand warmers and hot coffee, A-list actors hidden behind heavy coats and, outside the gates of City Hall, an a cappella group wearing nothing but pink.

All told, tens of thousands of New Yorkers — the biggest inauguration crowd in decades, if not longer — defied freezing temperatures, a fresh coating of snow and daunting security on Thursday to watch Zohran Mamdani take the oath to become the city’s next mayor.

It was the first large-scale New York mayoral inauguration in more than a decade, after Covid spoiled the last one. But more than the spectacle, they came to witness and take part in history, at a time when the nation and its largest city appear to be shifting direction.

Mr. Mamdani rested his hand on a Quran as he took the oath of office, becoming the first Muslim mayor in the city’s 400-year history.

The leading roles for two fellow socialists, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York and Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont, made clear that Mr. Mamdani intends to lead the most left-leaning City Hall in decades.

And lest anyone forget that Mr. Mamdani, 34, is now the first millennial (and the first former rapper) mayor of the largest American city, he quoted the city’s own Jadakiss, promising to govern “outside” in the city itself.

“My fellow New Yorkers,” he began his 20-minute inaugural address. “Today begins a new era.”

To read the entire article: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/01/nyregion/mamdani-inauguration-scene.html

Photo credit: Screenshot@NYCMayor’sOffice