Democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani will put his hand on the Quran when he is sworn in as mayor of New York City.
Mamdani, who takes office at midnight Thursday, is expected to use multiple Qurans during private and public swearing-in ceremonies — a move supporters are hailing as historic, but one that critics say underscores how identity politics and far-left ideology have become inseparable in modern New York City government.
According to The New York Times, Mamdani will be the first mayor in the city's history to take the oath of office with his hand on Islam's holiest book.
A senior adviser said Mamdani plans to use at least three different Qurans, including one that belonged to his grandfather.
Mamdani also is expected to use a Quran once owned by Arturo Schomburg, a Black writer and historian whose vast collection formed the foundation of what became the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture.
The Schomburg Quran will be lent by the New York Public Library and will be publicly displayed for the first time in an exhibit tied to the Schomburg Center's 100th anniversary celebration, the Times reported.
Library officials involved in selecting the book said the choice is meant to reflect the city's blend of faiths, backgrounds, and histories and to highlight Mamdani's own identity as a Muslim mayor born on the African continent, in Uganda.
The New York Post, citing city officials, reported Mamdani will use his grandfather's Quran and the Schomburg Quran during a private midnight ceremony at the abandoned Old City Hall subway station.
New York Attorney General Letitia James is expected to swear him in at midnight, while Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., will administer the oath during the public daytime ceremony at City Hall.
New York has long celebrated pluralism, and elected officials are not legally required to use any religious text at all.
Still, Mamdani's decision to make the Quran central to both ceremonies comes after a campaign in which his faith and worldview were defining features.
Supporters argue the inauguration signals growing Muslim influence in city politics.
Mamdani will join a small list of U.S. officials who have used a Quran in a swearing-in ceremony, including former Rep. Keith Ellison, D-Minn., and Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn.
But critics contend New Yorkers should be paying less attention to ceremonial firsts and more to the governing agenda of a self-described democratic socialist taking the reins of America's largest city at a time of persistent crime concerns, affordability pressures, and continued frustration over quality-of-life issues.
Mamdani's team has framed the Quran choices as deeply personal and historically meaningful.
Yet as New York heads into a new administration, many voters, especially those who feel ignored by elite progressives, will be watching to see whether City Hall is focused on public safety, fiscal sanity, and restoring a city many believe has been weakened by years of ideological governance.
Charlie McCarthy ✉
Charlie McCarthy, a writer/editor at Newsmax, has nearly 40 years of experience covering news, sports, and politics.
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