Zohran Mamdani had been in the New York State Assembly for just a few months when he and a handful of fellow Democratic lawmakers rolled out their sleeping bags in 2021.
The state was in the throes of the COVID-19 crisis and lawmakers spent the night on the floor of the state Capitol to try and convince then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo to tax the rich and bolster temporary eviction protections for tenants.
Sleeping on a cold, stone floor was an emblem of Mamdani’s time in Albany. During his five years in the Assembly, he was among the loudest voices at rallies and events for various causes favored by the left.
The next time Mamdani returns to the state’s capital city, it will be as New York City mayor.
And if the Queens Democrat wants to fund his lofty plans to provide universal child care and eliminate the fare for city buses, he may have to play more of an inside game — leaning on Gov. Kathy Hochul and legislative leaders to advance his agenda as they hash out major state policies behind closed doors.
Mamdani’s opponents in the mayoral race pointed to his relatively thin legislative record and absence of executive experience as reasons to question his ability to deliver on his agenda. His supporters say they’re confident he can thread the needle at the Capitol.
“Obviously, I think as a mayor, he's going to want to find places where consensus can be built, where progress can be made,” said Assemblymember Amanda Septimo, a Bronx Democrat who came up with the idea for the sleep-in four years ago. “But I don't think that that will ever mean sort of sitting on his hands and being quiet.”
Mamdani, a democratic socialist from Astoria, won a seat in the Assembly as a 29-year-old in 2020. He was part of a group of young upstarts from the left flank of the Democratic Party who defeated more moderate incumbents and banded together once they took their seats at the Capitol.
Mamdani’s agenda now relies on the city getting billions of dollars from Albany, which wields considerable influence over New York City and other municipalities, thanks in large part to a governmental structure that favors the state. He’s seeking $10 billion to pay for it — including $5 billion from a corporate tax increase, and $4 billion from a hike on New York City residents making $1 million or more. Both would require state approval.
In an interview before the general election, Mamdani said he expected to have a more productive relationship with the governor and Albany than his predecessors.
“We can have a relationship that’s built on understanding that we both have the same constituents,” Mamdani said. “I’m confident in that partnership.”
Most of the state’s major budgetary decisions are made by three people: the governor and the leaders of the state Assembly and Senate. And, at least in theory, Mamdani counts all three as allies. Hochul, Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins all endorsed Mamdani’s campaign ahead of the November election.
But significant hurdles remain. Hochul has repeatedly blocked efforts to increase the state income tax, and she’s made clear she will continue to do so in 2026 when she’s on the ballot for re-election. That would effectively dash 40% of Mamdani’s $10 billion revenue plan. She’s also been lukewarm about his plan to make buses fare free.
Mamdani’s earliest hires suggest he has navigating Albany on his mind.
Dean Fuleihan, whom Mamdani tapped to be his first deputy mayor last week, was a longtime Albany hand, serving in some of the top staff roles in the state Assembly for more than three decades before he became Mayor Bill de Blasio’s budget director and, later, top deputy.
In an interview on WNYC’s “Brian Lehrer Show” last week, Fuleihan suggested Mamdani’s path to fulfilling his campaign pledge of universal child care faces an easier path than de Blasio’s major pledge — universal pre-K — when he took office in 2014. Cuomo and de Blasio sparred over the particulars of the pre-K program and how to pay for it, with Cuomo ultimately rejecting de Blasio’s push for an income-tax hike on the wealthy.
Hochul, meanwhile, has previously signaled her support for universal child care, giving it a nod in her State of the State address in 2025 as she put forward a plan to expand a state child care tax credit. And Mamdani has said securing the goals of his agenda is more important than how the state pays for it.
“In this case, unlike what we confronted in 2014, we actually have a governor saying the same goal,” Fuleihan said. “There may be different approaches, but we have the same goal from the mayor-elect and the governor.”
Mamdani and Hochul met for around 90 minutes in Hochul’s Manhattan office last week, where the governor’s spokesperson said they discussed child care plans and how to deal with President Donald Trump’s administration, among other things.
But Mamdani’s left-leaning supporters have made a point of publicly pressuring Hochul, highlighting the uneasy alliance between the democratic socialist and the political moderate.
At least twice, they’ve peppered her with chants of “tax the rich,” including at a major pro-Mamdani rally in the days leading up to Election Day. Hochul pushed back at a post-election conference in Puerto Rico, warning them that their public pressure could backfire.
“I’m the type of person where the more you push me, the more I’m not going to do what you want,” Hochul said in an exchange captured by City & State. “So, a little lesson to all our friends out there.”
Supporters of increasing taxes on the wealthy say they have no intention of backing down.
“It’s not only advocates pushing for all of this, but it's people who have seen how the 1% lives,” said Marina Marcou-O'Malley, co-executive director of the Alliance for Quality Education, which is part of a coalition pushing for a wealth tax. “We are going to do what is necessary.”
So far, Mamdani has not yet announced any hires for his Albany team. Traditionally, New York City mayors have staff in Albany to push their agenda, particularly when the state Legislature is in session from January through June.
The mayor-elect’s allies in the Legislature are making clear they’re ready and willing to help their soon-to-be-former colleague get his plans over the finish line.
That includes state Senate Deputy Majority Leader Michael Gianaris, a Queens Democrat who worked with Mamdani to successfully push for a one-year pilot program for free bus routes in New York City in 2023.
When asked whether he would accept a job in Mamdani’s administration, Gianaris said he’d be of more help staying put.
“There's a lot of things that Zohran is trying to do that will require the help and assistance of the state Legislature and the governor, and I’m happy to roll up my sleeves and get to work up there,” Gianaris said.
Includes reporting by Jimmy Vielkind.
