New York City mayoral candidate, Zohran Mamdani, campaigns in New York City on April 16, 2025. (ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images)
Mamdani said earlier this month that New York City and the United States are facing a "dark moment." He then called the Trump administration an "authoritarian government" and slammed ICE for "abduct[ing]" immigrants."
According to Mamdani's campaign website, he is committed to "Trump-proofing NYC," by removing ICE from "all City facilities" and strengthening sanctuary city laws.
ZOHRAN MAMDANI LAUNCHES ANTI-TRUMP TOUR ACROSS FIVE BOROUGHS IN NEW YORK CITY
Resistance to Trump's crackdown on illegal immigration dominated headlines during New York City's Democratic mayoral primary, in which Mamdani handily won in June.
Primary contender and New York City Comptroller Brad Lander—whom Mamdani cross-endorsed and campaigned with in the primary—was arrested by Department of Homeland Security (DHS) agents in June after being accused of assaulting a federal officer as he tried to escort a migrant from their federal immigration court hearing.
While Lander ultimately faced no charges, the incident catapulted Trump's illegal immigration crackdown onto the New York City campaign trail.
Migrants reach for food being handed out while filmed by a woman outside the Roosevelt Hotel where dozens of recently arrived migrants have been camping out as they try to secure temporary housing on Aug. 2, 2023, in New York City. (Alexi Rosenfeld/Getty Images)
During incumbent Mayor Eric Adams' tenure, New York City became an epicenter of the migrant crisis as President Joe Biden's administration lifted COVID-era Title 42 expulsions and Gov. Greg Abbott, R-Texas, began sending busloads of migrants to New York City from his border state.
As the situation unfolded, Adams began speaking out against Biden's immigration policies, calling New York City's migrant crisis a state of emergency.
When Mamdani declared victory in the Democratic primary, he described his vision for New York City’s future as a place "where the mayor will use their power to reject Donald Trump's fascism, to stop mass ICE agents from deporting our neighbors and to govern our city as a model for the Democratic Party."
New York City Mayor Eric Adams arrives at Thurgood Marshall United States Courthouse in New York City on Friday, Nov. 1, 2024. (Adam Gray for Fox News Digital )
Meanwhile, Adams built a reputation during his tenure for challenging Biden's immigration policies while vowing to coordinate with Trump's illegal immigration crackdown, including working alongside Trump's border czar, Tom Homan.
Adams has also cozied up to Trump since he was elected in November, visiting both Mar-a-Lago and the White House. Trump's Justice Department dropped bribery, wire fraud and conspiracy charges against Adams earlier this year.
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Gov. Kathy Hochul, D-N.Y., weighed removing Adams from office following a slew of City Hall resignations after Adams' case was dropped.
Adams and former Gov. Andrew Cuomo are both running as independent candidates in New York City's mayoral race, and Curtis Sliwa is the Republican nominee. The election is on Nov. 4.
Fox News Digital's Andrew Mark Miller contributed to this report.
Deirdre Heavey is a politics writer for Fox News Digital.
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