By Bazona Barnabe Bado
Zohran Kwame Mamdani swore in today January 1, 2026, as Mayor of the city of New York. As Mamdani was sworn in as the 112th mayor of the city of New York, Mark Levine and Jumaane Williams were respectively sworn in as comptroller, and public advocate of the city of New York. While Mamdani was sworn in on the Quran, Levine did it on Jews bible, and Jumaane on the Bible. The three, as their hand on different holy books, have promised to defend the constitution of New York. A symbolic act that demonstrates the diversity of the city that never sleeps.
The inaugural ceremony has drawn a sea of people that start gathering around 8: 00 Am to 3:00Pm all along Broadway down to Park place despite a hostile weather: 23degree. As journalist, we felt it when a frozen hand struggled to handle the pen to take notes.
The mayor of New York city Zohran Kwame Mamdani was sworn in by Bernie Sanders, the United States senator from Vermon.
” I stand before you moved by the privilege of taking this sacred oath, humbled by the faith that you have placed in me, and honored to serve as either your 111th or 112th Mayor of New York City. But I do not stand alone,” said the mayor who thanked every single New Yorker, those who voted for him as well as those who did not vote for him including his predecessor ex-mayor Eric Adams.
He has promised to be the mayor of all New Yorkers. “This will not be a tale of one city, governed only by the one percent. Nor will it be a tale of two cities, the rich versus the poor.
It will be a tale of 8 and a half million cities, each of them a New Yorker with hopes and fears, each a universe, each of them woven together,” he said.
The mayor did not forget his promises during the campaign. He stands firmly about them: “The cost of childcare will no longer discourage young adults from starting a family—because we will deliver universal childcare for the many by taxing the wealthiest few. Those in rent-stabilized homes will no longer dread the latest rent hike—because we will freeze the rent. Getting on a bus without worrying about a fare hike or whether you’ll be late to your destination will no longer be deemed a small miracle—because we will make buses fast and free. These policies are not simply about the costs we make free, but the lives we fill with freedom. For too long in our city, freedom has belonged only to those who can afford to buy it. Our City Hall will change that,” he recalled.
For Senator Bernie Sanders, universal childcare, freezing rent, fast and free buses are not radical policies. “Rich people must pay their fair share,” he said.
As he has started to unfold his agenda, mayor Mamdani declared: “Beginning today, we will govern expansively and audaciously. We may not always succeed. But never will we be accused of lacking the courage to try.” “The work continues, the work endures, the work, my friends, has only just begun.”