President Donald Trump is meeting with New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani in the Oval Office at 3 p.m. ET on Friday.
It is the first talk between the two leaders who have previously been deeply critical of each other, with Trump repeatedly, and incorrectly, labeling the socialist Democrat a "communist" and threatening to withhold federal funding from New York if he won. Meanwhile, Mamdani said in his victory speech that the U.S. was "a nation betrayed by Donald Trump."
However, Trump on Friday said that he predicted a civil meeting with Mamdani today, telling Fox News Radio that they would “get along fine." Similarly, Mamdani has brushed off concerns he may be walking into a political ambush, similar to the one Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky faced in the White House in February. “I’ll be ready for whatever happens,” he told reporters Thursday.
What To Know
- Mamdani, who will be sworn in Jan. 1, 2026, won the NYC race with historic voter turnout and countered Trump's actions in the city, particularly on immigration.
- Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Mamdani confirmed that it was his team that had arranged the meeting, adding it was “customary for an incoming mayor of this city to meet with the White House, given the mutual reliance.”
- "Communist Mayor of New York City, Zohran 'Kwame' Mamdani, has asked for a meeting," Trump posted on Truth Social on Nov. 19.
- The meeting is set to begin at 3 p.m. ET and will be held closed doors.
Stay with Newsweek for the latest updates.
Nov 21, 2025 at 02:07 PM EST
What has the White House said about Mamdani-Trump meeting?
Karoline Leavitt, White House press secretary, commented on the meeting between NYC Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani and President Donald Trump during her Thursday press briefing.
“It speaks to the fact that President Trump is willing to meet with anyone and talk to anyone and to try to do what’s right on behalf of the American people whether they live in blue states or red states or blue cities, in a city that’s becoming much more left than I think this president ever anticipated in his many years of living in New York," she said.
Nov 21, 2025 at 02:03 PM EST
Mamdani shares pic of himself jetting off to Washington D.C. ahead of Trump meeting
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