Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani speaks in the New York City Democratic Mayoral Primary Debate at NBC Studios on June 4, 2025, in New York City. Nine candidates are taking the stage for the first debate of the primary election for mayor. (Yuki Iwamura-Pool/Getty Images)
"Even if he doesn't necessarily follow through on the most radical positions that he has taken in the very recent past, he has expressed support for a lot of initiatives that would erode public safety in lots of different ways, including and especially in the communities that deal with the brunt of our nation's gun violence problem," Mangual said.
Mangual pointed to several possible scenarios under a Mamdani mayorship that could lead to problems for security in the city, including potentially working with the city council to eliminate the NYPD gang database, which Mangual said would be an "absolute disaster" for the city.
NEW YORK LAWMAKER SOUNDS ALARM ON POTENTIAL 'DEVASTATING' EFFECTS OF MAMDANI VICTORY: 'CHAOS'
Zohran Mamdani, New York City Mayoral Candidate speaks to the media at 32BJ SEIU headquarters following a mass shooting in Manhattan that took the lives of an New York Police Department (NYPD) police officer and others in Manhattan, New York. (Getty)
Mangual explained that Mamdani was part of a "legislative landscape" as a state assemblyman that pushed bail reform and discovery reform that "have essentially made it significantly less likely that perpetrators who are arrested will be, A, prosecuted and B, held to account in a meaningful way."
Mangual said he is concerned that Mamdani's resume will hurt police recruiting and eventually make the city less safe as the NYPD struggles to achieve full staffing.
"So, now you have a situation in which you might have a mayor who has just set himself up for a terrible relationship with the police department who is signaling that he's going to cooperate with an increasingly radical city council who wants to take even more away from that police department, who is then going to send a signal that, ‘Hey, you are not going to have a good time working here,’" Mangual said.
Fox News Digital reached out to the Mamdani campaign for comment.
Andrew Mark Miller is a reporter at Fox News. Find him on Twitter @andymarkmiller and email tips to AndrewMark.Miller@Fox.com.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/mamdanis-past-visceral-disdain-for-police-scares-a-lot-of-new-yorkers-for-good-reason-expert