All Hands On Deck: During This Mayoral Race, The Stakes for Our Community Have Never Been Higher

By A Concerned Citizen

“You have the right to remain silent.”

These are the words that Prime Minister Netanyahu will hear if Zohran Mamdani becomes the next Mayor of New York and the Prime Minister attends the UN conference next week here in NYC.

Mamdani has vowed to arrest Netanyahu because “whether we are speaking about Vladimir Putin or Netanyahu. I think that this should be a city that is in compliance with international law.”

Well, there you have it. Mamdani sees a moral equivalence between PM Netanyahu’s defending the Jewish nation against terrorist incursions and attacks and Putin’s invading neighboring countries and seeking to annex them.

Before we get to some of the local issues, let’s first take a look at Mamdani’s actions, positions, and passions regarding the Jewish state and the Holocaust to better understand his mindset.

After being listed as a sponsor in 2021 (his first year in office), Mamdani did not sponsor the annual resolution for Holocaust Remembrance Day then or any of the last four years.

He has not missed an opportunity to make it clear that Israel may have the right to exist, but not as a Jewish State. In other words, Israel has the right to exist, but it doesn’t.

During an event hosted by the UJA-Federation of New York last month, Mamdani also declined to recognize Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state.

Again, during last week’s New York City Democratic mayoral debate, he once again refused to acknowledge Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state.

“I think ultimately, the focus of our mayor should be on the issues of New York City at hand,” is a typical response when asked about city resolutions, expressing solidarity with Israel and traveling there.

Yet he insists BDS is a salient “local” issue and said that mayoral candidates should be pressured to join the movement to boycott Israel.

He also partakes in a favorite activity of Jew-haters, supporting antisemitic tropes.

Especially ones that can rile up the locals, especially when they’re warned that once again, the Jews are coming for their money. The best example of this is when he falsely claims the taxpayers’ foot the bill for NY politicians’ trips to Israel. In fact, these JCRC trips are privately funded. Travel, accommodations, and even security: not a dime comes out of city coffers.

The apple does not fall far from the tree. His father in a speech at Columbia declared: “Jews can have a homeland in historic Palestine, but not a state.”

Even the New York Post’s editorial board came out with the headline that “Every politician who endorses NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani has earned your complete contempt,” and they go on to list several, including Brad Lander, Michael Blake, the mayoral rivals who are cross-endorsing him. They also mention Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Jamaal Bowman, who recently endorsed Zohran.

“Zohran would not run without the support of the NYC-DSA,” is a quote from the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) internal planning document. Not surprising, since Mamdani is an active supporter of a recruiter for this leftist anarchist group.

For those of you unfamiliar with Mamdani and his DSA, here are some of the things on their agenda:

• Demilitarize, decolonize, and strive for a future of international solidarity
• Redistribute resources from the worst producers
• Allow trans minors to access gender affirming (sic) care without parental consent
• A revolution in public education through the advancement of a Green New Deal for Public Schools.
• And, of course, their favorite, “Defund the Police”
• Demilitarize, decolonize, and strive for a future of international solidarity.

The education revolution may be the most dangerous as it seeks to destroy the minds of New York’s young people, turning them into rabid Socialists. 

Over the years, our community has seen how much we can accomplish for our schools and yeshivas by working on and with local school boards. Most of the country operates on this principle. What the rest of the country understands, and Mamdani’s Democratic Socialists of America do not is that communities vary in so many ways, so every group is best served by local boards elected to serve local needs and interests.

True to Socialist thinking of centralized power, this so-called “education revolution” will force outside control onto local school boards, bringing tyranny into our communities.

In addition to forcing the above-mentioned “gender-affirming care” on minors behind their parents’ backs, their agenda includes:

Establishing regional councils of school districts, adding state officials and educational departments to the local elected bodies.

Documenting past educational inequities in the region.

“Decarcerate our schools” by repealing truancy laws, ending zero tolerance disciplinary policies, suspensions and expulsions, surveillance of students, and removing police, both public and private, from all schools, colleges, and universities.

Increasing access to educational facilities for illegal aliens. How to pay for that? By disconnecting property taxes from school funding and fully fund public education, leaving our yeshivas on their own.

In May 2023, Mamdani advanced the “Not on our Dime!: Ending New York Funding of Israeli Settler Violence Act,” legislation which would ban charities from using tax-deductible donations to aid organizations that work in the West Bank. Mamdani argued that the legislation would help the state fight against so-called Israeli “war crimes” against Palestinians.

On October 8, 2023, just 24 hours after the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust, Mamdani published a statement condemning Netanyahu’s “declaration of war,” suggesting that Israel would use the terror attacks to justify committing a second “Nakba.” Mamdani then said that Israel can only secure its long-term safety by “ending the occupation and dismantling apartheid.”

Five days later, he further criticized Israel’s response to the Hamas-led massacres by saying that “We are on the brink of a genocide of Palestinians in Gaza right now.”

In January 2024, he called on NYC to cease sending funds to Israel, saying that “Voters oppose their tax dollars funding a genocide.” 

On June 8, 2025 the New York Post reported Mamdani called for a boycott of Cornell Tech because of its partnership with Technion University of Israel.

In addition to producing four noble laureates, Technion (referred to as the MIT of the Middle East), has made major advances in the fields of medicine, aerospace, and engineering.

Technion has strategic partnerships with Microsoft, IBM, Intel, Philips, Johnson & Johnson, and Coca-Cola, among others. No word yet on whether Mamdani plans to stop using devices powered by Intel chips, Microsoft software, or IBM technology.

Ah! The company he keeps! Having been endorsed by disgraced former alarm-pulling Congressman Jamaal Bowman (who denied the October 7th rapes before walking that back), AOC, and Hamas influences, Hasan Piker, the Muslim Turkish-American left wing political commentator who shills for Hamas and was named “Antisemite of the Year” in 2024 by the pro-Israel group StopAntisemitism.

Mamdani condemned Israel the day after October 7th, regularly gives interviews on unapologetically antisemitic platforms, and is on the record saying he will divest from Israel if elected mayor of New York City.

The Democratic mayoral primary field has mostly extreme leftists, and decisions are being made daily who should be supported in the primary. One thing is certain. Whoever is the least extreme candidate with a good chance of winning must get our endorsement. A Mamdani victory is not just a threat to our way of life and the character of the city. It will also embolden the DSA types to challenge centrist politicians at all levels of government in the country, the city, and the state.

Some background on me. I’m proud to be a lifelong republican and I’ve never gotten involved in or endorsed a candidate in Democratic primary. I’ll be looking for other options in the general election in November. But for now, however, mixed his record is, Cuomo has always been someone that you can deal with and can talk to. And most importantly, he seems to be the only candidate that stands between us and Mamdani. So, do it enthusiastically. Do whatever works for you, but vote for the candidate that we need to win in this primary: Andrew Cuomo for Mayor of New York.

Now you understand why “all hands on deck” is not hyperbole.

If the boy cries wolf, listen to him

It’s always important to vote.

For the first time it’s existentially important. n

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of the 5TJT.