Cities

How the Theatrics of Mamdani’s Trump Meeting Backfired

How the Theatrics of Mamdani’s Trump Meeting Backfired How the Theatrics of Mamdani’s Trump Meeting Backfired

By pandering to the president’s vanity, the New York mayor reinforced Trump’s image as a strongman commanding deference—an especially bad look on the eve of Trump’s war with Iran

Mar 5, 2026 / D.D. Guttenplan

New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani attends the New York City Pride March on June 29, 2025, in New York City.

New York City Hospitals Fold to Trump. Will Zohran Mamdani Defend Trans Care? New York City Hospitals Fold to Trump. Will Zohran Mamdani Defend Trans Care?

As a candidate, Zohran Mamdani made promises to New York City’s trans community. With two hospital systems ending trans youth care, he’s now facing his first test.

Mar 2, 2026 / Sophie Hurwitz

Mamdani Meets a Second Snow Crisis With Enhanced Resolve—and a Little Luck

Mamdani Meets a Second Snow Crisis With Enhanced Resolve—and a Little Luck Mamdani Meets a Second Snow Crisis With Enhanced Resolve—and a Little Luck

The mayor mobilized New York's resources nimbly and creatively. Now, on to the budget

Feb 26, 2026 / D.D. Guttenplan

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani speaks at a press conference at Deno’s Wonder Wheel on Coney Island in New York City on February 15, 2026.

Zohran Mamdani Is Putting Corporate Sick-Leave Cheats on Notice Zohran Mamdani Is Putting Corporate Sick-Leave Cheats on Notice

The mayor announced that the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection will investigate employers where more than half their workers take no paid time off in a given year.

Feb 24, 2026 / Prajwal Bhat

I’m a Journalist on SNAP. Here’s What I Saw During the Latest Food Crisis.

I’m a Journalist on SNAP. Here’s What I Saw During the Latest Food Crisis. I’m a Journalist on SNAP. Here’s What I Saw During the Latest Food Crisis.

As for virtually all SNAP recipients, my benefits have never been enough to cover monthly food expenses. Meanwhile, Trump calls any food aid at all “un-American.”

Feb 21, 2026 / Gabbriel Schivone

Anti-ICE demonstrators rally at a demonstration organized by the Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee, on February 15, 2026.

The Urgency of Marrying Affordability to Anti-Corporate Populism The Urgency of Marrying Affordability to Anti-Corporate Populism

For all the good news, Democrats are at a dangerous moment politically.

Feb 19, 2026 / Mike Lux

Mamdani Launches His First Salvos in New York’s Fiscal Battle

Mamdani Launches His First Salvos in New York’s Fiscal Battle Mamdani Launches His First Salvos in New York’s Fiscal Battle

The mayor, the governor, and the members of the city’s big-ticket tax base are all squaring off over prospective tax increases and service cuts.

Feb 19, 2026 / D.D. Guttenplan

Sunnyside Yard circa 1971.

Sunnyside Yard and the Quest for Affordable Housing in New York Sunnyside Yard and the Quest for Affordable Housing in New York

Constructing new residential buildings, let alone those with rental units that New Yorkers can afford, is never an easy task.

Feb 16, 2026 / Books & the Arts / Karrie Jacobs

New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani and NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch at a January news conference.

The Divisions Mamdani Commands Are About to Be Battle-Tested The Divisions Mamdani Commands Are About to Be Battle-Tested

The New York mayor draws flack from the Catholic press, holds his own for now with the NYPD, and will have to twist arms in Albany.

Feb 12, 2026 / D.D. Guttenplan

Fiorello La Guardia speaking in 1933 in East Harlem.

Fiorello La Guardia and the Making of Modern New York Fiorello La Guardia and the Making of Modern New York

How the popular mayor and a popular front of radicals and reformers transformed New York City

Feb 9, 2026 / Books & the Arts / Michael Kazin

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