Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani names committees to advise on job candidates, policy

New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani on Monday announced the creation of 17 transition committees to find the right candidates among about 70,000 job applicants to tackle "pressing issues" like housing, transportation and immigration justice.

Mamdani appeared with chairs of his transition team Monday at the Conservatory Garden in East Harlem where he said the committees will include 400 volunteers and leaders from various sectors of the city, all charged with making hiring recommendations and advising on policy.

"These are the people that New Yorkers look to for wisdom, for guidance, and their creativity, their drive, their commitment is what sets our city apart, and I have entrusted them with a mighty responsibility to lead these committees and to provide the policy and hiring recommendations that our transition team will turn to as we prepare to begin governing on Jan. 1," Mamdani said of the new committee members.

Mamdani said the committees are part of his goal of "a new standard of drive and dedication and a commitment to dignity from City Hall."

In a statement, the mayor-elect's team said the committees "will focus on the most pressing issues facing New York City under the current affordability crisis."

To that end, the administration is also looking to fill positions focused on culture, community organizing, worker justice, climate and infrastructure, Mamdani said, adding that the new committees are tasked with helping shape his agenda for such polices as free busing and universal child care for city residents.

Mamdani introduced several of the committee members Monday, including Annemarie Gray, executive director of the housing nonprofit Open New York, who previously worked under outgoing Mayor Eric Adams and former Mayor Bill de Blasio.

Gray is a member of the housing committee, which will be tasked with advising on ways to implement Mamdani's campaign promises on freezing rent for tenants and new housing near transit hubs.

"I joined because I also know from experience that success comes not only from having a compelling vision," Gray said. "It also requires being very serious about effective governance and what it really takes to make bold ideas happen."

The Mamdani transition team did not say how many administration jobs it was looking to fill at City Hall. Mamdani said he was looking forward to meeting with Adams about the transition but the two have yet to set up a meeting.

Mamdani said the new hires will help fill a shortfall of 17,000 job vacancies that had previously existed in the city government. The average age of the roughly 70,000 applicants is about 28 years old.

"Those overseeing these committees will help lead this work," Mamdani said. "New Yorkers have placed a great deal of hope and expectation in this new course that they have elected us to chart. It is a hope that City Hall can deliver results that make material, tangible changes in the lives of working people across these five boroughs."

By John Asbury

john.asbury@newsday.comJohnAsbury

John Asbury is a breaking news and general assignment reporter. He has been with Newsday since 2014 and previously worked at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, California.