Christian nationalists are losing their minds over the election of Zohran Kwame Mamdani as the first Muslim mayor of New York City.
Before and since Mamdani’s Nov. 4 victory, evangelicals, right-wing politicians and conspiracy theorists expressed fears the Ugandan-born immigrant would launch an Islamic revolution from New York that would threaten their visions of America as a Christian nation.
“This man came to America for one reason: To turn America into an Islamic theocracy,” U.S. Rep. Andy Ogles, R-Tenn., said in reference to Mamdani’s move to the U.S. with his family at age 7.
Christmas greeting card from Andy Ogles and family.
Ogles also falsely accused Mamdani of becoming a U.S. citizen in 2018 under false pretenses: “I say NO to sharia law — which is why I’ve presented an argument to have Mamdani sent back to Uganda based on information he clearly withheld. I’m fighting to take our country back. DOJ must investigate.”
Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith of Indiana expressed the deep-seated fear Christian nationalists have of living in a country dominated by any religion other than their own — especially Islam.
“What’s the long-standing historical tradition in America? It’s Christian values. It was not rooted in Islam, it was not rooted in socialism, Marxism. It was rooted in Judeo-Christian ethics and capitalism,” Beckwith said on the “Save Heritage Indiana” podcast.
Mamdani’s win
On Tuesday, Mamdani took 50.4% of the vote in the mayoral race, beating out former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and radio talk show host and Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa.
Democrats scored a number of other victories in the election, including the governorships in New Jersey and Virginia. Voters approved California’s redistricting ballot measure that favors Democrats as a response to Republican-centric redistricting in Texas demanded by President Donald Trump.
But even fellow Democrat Cuomo took up the anti-Muslim theme as the election neared, agreeing with a radio host that Mamdani probably would cheer on another 9-11 terrorist attack on the city. Outgoing mayor and Donald Trump admirer Eric Adams warned New York City would “become Europe” under Mamdani’s leadership.
“He compared me to violent extremists, and he lied when he said that our movement seeks to burn churches and destroy communities,” Mamdani responded. “The day before that, (mayoral candidate and Guardian Angels founder) Curtis Sliwa slandered me from a debate stage when he claimed that I support global jihad.”
Mamdani added he has been the target of political ads depicting him as a terrorist and his candidacy as an aircraft flying into the World Trade Center.
Jonathan Greenblatt
Some Jewish Americans also articulated concerns, not of sharia law but of Mamdani’s track record of supporting pro-Palestinian activists, causes and policies that would limit American support for Israel.
“The truth is we’re deeply concerned about what the next four years could auger for Jewish New Yorkers with the antisemitic language he has promoted,” American Defamation League CEO Jonathan Greenblatt said during a Nov. 5 webinar. “All of this contributes to our concern because it enables an environment where hate is tolerated and hostility is as a kind of permission structure.”
In 2024, ADL documented 976 antisemitic acts in New York City, the largest number since tracking began in 1947, Greenblatt added. There were 200 anti-Jewish incidents on college campuses last year, including 53 at Columbia University.
“What’s clear is that we need a mayor who will stand unequivocally against antisemitism in word and deed. And I say that because the mayor has been open in the last 24 hours and prior saying he’s against the antisemitism,” Greenblatt said.
The Republican Jewish Coalition, however, gave no quarter, condemning Democrats for electing an “antisemite to run the largest city in America with the largest number of Jews in the country.”
However, exit polling shows 33% of New York Jews who voted in the mayoral race voted for Mamdani.
Not just religion
Religion hasn’t been the only knock on Mamdani from Christian nationalists and other Republicans. The New York state Democratic assemblyman and dual member of the Democratic Socialists of America ran a campaign focused on freezing rents, making public buses and child care free, raising the minimum wage and increasing taxes on the wealthiest residents.
“I think there’s a question of how we return back to what made so many of us proud to be Democrats, and I think it’s that focus on an economic agenda and on ensuring that people can do more than just struggle,” he said in a June ABC News report.
On a recent edition of 60 Minutes, Trump disagreed with correspondent Norah O’Donnell’s characterization of Mamdani as a Democratic Socialist — something different than a communist.
“Communist,” Trump interrupted. “He’s far worse than a socialist.”
“Communist,” Trump interrupted. “He’s far worse than a socialist.”
Trump also warned of financial consequences for New York City during Mamdani’s four-year term: “It’s going to be hard for me as the president to give a lot of money to New York because if you have a communist running New York all you’re doing is wasting the money you’re sending there.”
The president’s MAGA base reacted with Islamophobic and anti-immigrant hyperbole blending objections to Mamdani’s faith and politics.
“A third world communist won in New York because New York is a third world city now. This is mass migration working exactly as intended. It isn’t any more complicated than that,” right-wing influencer and podcaster Matt Walsh intoned.
Far-right political activist and conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer urged the federal government to act against Mamdani: “Trump could easily dismantle Mamdani and his entire Islamic network by denigrating the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization and filing charges against the Islamic groups and 501(c)(3)s that funded Mamdani’s campaign.”
Muslim reaction
Muslims in New York, on the other hand, have expressed both excitement and concern about Mamdani’s mayoral campaign and win, The New York Times reported. “They cheer Mr. Mamdani’s ascendancy and see new possibilities for themselves and their children. But they also worry for his safety and wonder how the presence of a Muslim mayor might affect life for the hundreds of thousands of others in the city who share his faith.”
Some Muslims outside New York enthusiastically embraced the victory of one of their own.
Almas Muscatwalla
“His victory renews my hope in America’s democracy that meaningful change is still possible and that a government for, by, and of the people can endure,” said Almas Muscatwalla, a commissioner with Dallas-based Housing Solutions for North Texas and a leader in interfaith work in the Dallas area.
“In his leadership, Mayor Zohran may also help demystify the ‘otherness’ that Muslims have experienced in the post-9/11 era. For centuries, Muslims have helped shape the story of America through faith, resilience, and contribution.”
The Council on American-Islamic Relations played up Mamdani’s support for human rights in Palestine as a “major turning point” for Muslim political engagement in the U.S.
“Mayor-Elect Mamdani’s ability to win while openly advocating for Palestinian human rights and experiencing a barrage of anti-Muslim hate also marks a historic rebuke of both Islamophobia and anti-Palestinian racism in politics,” the organization said. “Regardless of whether anyone agrees with Mayor-Elect Mamdani’s stances on various policies issues, all Americans should celebrate our nation for once again showing that America is a place where people of all races, faiths and backgrounds can make history.”
Rebuke of Netanyahu
On the national scene, New York Times columnist David Wallace-Wells sees a reaction against the GOP’s unflinching support for Israel and its hawkish prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu.
“This summer, Gallup found that only 8% of Democrats supported Israel’s military action in Gaza, and the declines aren’t simply generational, with bigger drops of support among older Democrats than younger ones,” he wrote. “It is not entirely clear what path the Democratic Party will take on Israel going forward, but Mamdani’s win is one sign among many that the old party consensus is tenuous. This also explains some of the sheer intensity of the anti-Mamdani animosity, which has been nearly as startling as his rise.”
In a 6-minute video released during the campaign, Mamdani addressed his own life experience: “To be Muslim in New York is to expect indignity. But indignity does not make us distinct — there are many New Yorkers who face it. It is the tolerance of that indignity that does. In an era of ever-diminishing bipartisanship, Islamophobia has emerged as one of the few areas of agreement.”
For decades, evangelical leaders have warned about the encroachment of sharia law in the United States — a fear unfounded by any empirical evidence. A decade ago, Public Religion Research Institute found 73% of American evangelicals believed the “values of Islam are at odds with American values and way of life.”
These long-held beliefs undergird conservatives’ opposition to Mamdani as mayor.
The website dw.com has an entire page devoted to debunking conspiracy theories about Mamdani. That page also notes a New York Times report that Mamdani is seen by some Muslims as “not Muslim enough.” For example, he has said Israel has a right to exist.