Mamdani in Albany: Few bills, but a reputation for finding allies and advocating forcefully

ALBANY — New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani saw just four bills he sponsored become law during his five years in the state legislature. He co-sponsored more than 230 others.

But in a short time, Mamdani built a reputation for knowing how to partner with more powerful legislators, thoroughness and picking issues that "the little guy" supported.

Mamdani, 34, is expected to push for a new era in the city, focusing on affordability and progressive policies that reflect his democratic socialist background.

A review of his time in the state Assembly shows a legislator advancing causes supported by the left wing of the Democratic Party, as well as the mundane requests every legislator is asked to handle.

Interviews with legislators close to Mamdani reveal an elected official with an intuitive understanding of how to build coalitions and partnerships to advance those causes.

State Sen. Jabari Brisport, who roomed with Mamdani in Albany, said that when Mamdani arrived at the state Capitol, he immediately came across as an extremely thorough organizer, quick to identify allies beyond the small circle of democratic socialists in the state legislature.

"Zohran was really adamant about educating himself as much as he could, asking really sharp questions at the hearings," Brisport said.

That strategy extended to identifying which elected officials to reach out to for various levels of support, from signing on to a letter to attending a rally or co-sponsoring a bill, Brisport said.

One of the clearest examples was a fight that happened in New York City, rather than Albany. In October 2021, the newly elected Mamdani joined city taxi workers on a hunger strike as they advocated for debt relief for taxi medallion holders.

'Working with anyone'

Mamdani was elected to represent the Assembly's 36th District, encompassing the Queens neighborhoods of western and central Astoria, Ditmars and Astoria Heights, in 2020. Earlier this year, he upended the state’s political order with his victory over former Gov. Andrew Cuomo in New York City’s June Democratic primary. Mamdani then easily defeated Cuomo, who ran as an independent, and Republican Curtis Sliwa in the November general election.

One of the criticisms leveled at Mamdani during the campaign was his relative lack of experience in government and his legislative track record of just a handful of bills.

Brisport discounted the idea that the number of bills a legislator gets passed is a reflection on their effectiveness.

"I think when people start talking about individual bills being passed, there's tons of legislators, passing dozens of bills and a bunch of them are like renaming a highway," he said.

Brisport said one trait that differentiated Mamdani from other legislators was his ability to build pressure from both inside and outside the legislature. Brisport pointed to the Fix the MTA campaign, which resulted in a pilot program with one free bus line in all five boroughs in New York City.

It was not an issue other legislators had taken up. Mamdani partnered with state Senate Deputy Majority Leader Michael Gianaris, who became a key political ally, pulled in other colleagues through events in their districts while also building a pressure campaign in New York City with advocates and other groups.

The bus pilot program was not renewed. But it became one of the main planks of Mamdani’s mayoral campaign.

Brisport said he expects Mamdani’s ability to apply pressure inside and outside of government to continue once Mamdani is sworn in.

Gianaris, who endorsed Mamdani in August ahead of the November general election, agreed.

"I think his biggest advantage in advocating for his issues is his ability to get the attention of people who don't normally focus on the inner workings of government in terms of the general public," he said.

Mamdani shared his own view on his approach to legislating in a recent interview with The New York Times.

"My belief in politics is a belief in making the principled possible," he said. "And that requires working with anyone and everyone who shows interest."

Republican attacks

Mamdani has drawn attention for other reasons. Republicans and more moderate Democrats have derided Mamdani and some of his policy proposals. Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, who is seeking the Republican gubernatorial nomination, has called Mamdani’s policies, "pro-criminal" and "anti-American."

Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie said he found the intensity of the criticisms directed toward Mamdani to be "weird," and said Republicans were trying to use Mamdani as a political football.

Heastie acknowledged that what happens in New York City influences its suburbs.

"It's a stretch, and even the most I'd say weird ... to say that asking for an affordable city is somehow going to be a problem for people outside of the city," Heastie said.

He pointed to the meeting last month between Mamdani and President Donald Trump, who had criticized Mamdani online and endorsed Cuomo in the mayoral general election.

The meeting between the mayor-elect and the president caught some observers off-guard with its genial tone, with Trump saying both men wanted New York City to do well.

"I think that shows that Zohran has the ability to even sit in a room with someone who was perceived to be an arch enemy and lay out his agenda and talk about where he wants to work in common ground," Heastie said.

Behind the scenes, Mamdani played a major role in organizing efforts around major bills the state Legislature wrestled with during his time in office, including good-cause eviction, single-payer health care and other progressive causes, Brisport said.

"None of those are his bills. And they’re all major victories," Brisport said.

Mamdani also supported bills that were ideological messages but would have little practical impact. For example, he sponsored a bill that would require the state Department of Labor to publicly list companies with more than 50 employees who receive public assistance.

The bill had languished in Albany for years. For supporters, it was a way to call attention to the fact that large corporations, like McDonald’s and Walmart, sometimes pay employees wages that require them to apply for public assistance to make ends meet. The bill did not pass.

 Stance on settlements

 And Mamdani, who came up in the city’s Democratic Socialist political circles, was also not afraid to advocate for issues that other legislators shied away from.

One of the most controversial pieces of legislation Mamdani sponsored was a bill that would target tax-exempt charities that provide money to Israeli settler organizations operating in the West Bank and Gaza.

Mamdani knew he was touching a third rail in state politics, given the close ties between Israel and many New York politicians, Brisport said.

What he didn’t expect was the near-instantaneous blowback, Brisport said. Many of Mamdani’s colleagues in the state Legislature signed a letter stating they would not vote for his bill.

Leadership of both the state Assembly and Senate made it clear the bill was dead on arrival. Mamdani was undeterred.

He organized a rally in support of the bill at the state Capitol and continue to advocate for it. Brisport said he admired the move.

"It was extremely impressive, and just showed that he's always willing to organize," Brisport said, "even when the current establishment is doing everything that it can to suppress it."