Zohran Mamdani hasn’t even taken office yet, but New York City’s mayor-elect is already gearing up for a fight with President Donald Trump—and lining up allies for the battles ahead.
According to Axios, Mamdani, who trounced former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo in November’s general election, has spent the past week on the phone with a trio of Democratic governors: Illinois’ JB Pritzker, Maryland’s Wes Moore, and Pennsylvania’s Josh Shapiro. The calls, aides say, have centered on both policy and politics: how to govern effectively in Trump’s America, and how to push back when the president targets blue cities.
That last point isn’t theoretical. Trump has repeatedly smeared Mamdani as a “communist” and threatened to choke off federal funds to New York if the mayor-elect steps out of line. His administration has pushed for or already deployed National Guard units and immigration raids to cities like Chicago and Baltimore—moves Democratic governors are now trying to coordinate against.
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For Pritzker, those threats are familiar. Over Halloween weekend, he pleaded with the Trump administration to pause immigration raids so children could trick-or-treat safely—a request the White House gleefully ignored. Trump also dispatched hundreds of National Guard members to Illinois, calling Chicago “the most dangerous city in the world.”
Mamdani and Pritzker, Axios reports, discussed how to prepare for similar interference in New York. Their call reportedly focused on Trump’s troop deployments in Chicago and how to brace for the possibility of a military presence in New York City.
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker at a “No Kings” protest on Oct. 18 in Chicago.
The democratic socialist’s outreach has also touched on broader Democratic Party priorities. His conversation with Moore included talk of innovation and small-business support, while his call with Shapiro covered antisemitism, Israel, and permitting reform.
Taken together, the discussions suggest Mamdani is seeking advice from across the party spectrum. The three governors span the Democratic Party’s ideological range—from the staunchly progressive Pritzker to the more centrist Shapiro—each with their own approach to dealing with Trump.
Pritzker has cast himself as a bulwark against Trump, at one point declaring, “You come for my people, you come through me.”
Moore has struck a more conciliatory tone with the president at times, but hardened his stance in recent months. When Trump threatened to send troops to Baltimore, Moore shot back, “We do not need occupiers.” He’s since launched a redistricting commission to counter what he called “Trump-inspired power grabs” in GOP-led states.
For Mamdani, those experiences offer both warning signs and roadmaps. His win—a decisive victory that electrified progressives and unnerved moderates—has made him one of the most closely watched up-and-coming Democrats in the country.
It’s no surprise, then, that prominent Democrats are eager to connect: White House hopefuls including Shapiro, Moore, and Pritzker are actively cultivating ties with Mamdani, whose unlikely success story has instantly made him one of the party’s rising stars.
Even California Gov. Gavin Newsom, fresh off a strong election night of his own, said he texted Mamdani to congratulate him.
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For his part, Mamdani has promised to work with Democrats of all stripes—including New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, who offered a lukewarm endorsement during his campaign.
In his victory speech last week, Mamdani framed his mission in sweeping terms.
“If anyone can show a nation betrayed by Donald Trump how to defeat him, it is the city that gave rise to him,” he said
That message seems to be the through line of his early moves: a mix of defiance and preparation. Mamdani isn’t waiting to learn how to govern in Trump’s America—he’s already studying the playbook.
