President Donald Trump said Sunday he plans to meet with New York City’s mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, signaling a surprising pause in what has been one of the nation’s most high-profile political rivalries.
“We’ll work something out,” Trump told reporters as he prepared to return to Washington after spending the weekend in Florida. He said the mayor-elect had expressed interest in a meeting and added, “We want to see everything work out well for New York.”
According to The Associated Press, the comments mark a dramatic tonal shift from the months-long attacks Trump aimed at Mamdani throughout the mayoral campaign.
Trump had repeatedly labeled Mamdani a “communist,” predicted New York’s collapse if he won, and even threatened to deport him, despite Mamdani being a naturalized U.S. citizen born in Uganda. Trump also floated withholding federal funding from the city.
Mamdani, 34, rose from a largely unknown state lawmaker to one of the most visible progressive figures in the country. His campaign combined aggressive social media outreach, a slate of left-leaning policy proposals, and a direct challenge to Trump’s second-term agenda.
The message resonated with a wide range of New Yorkers, helping him defeat former Gov. Andrew Cuomo by nearly 9 percentage points.
On election night, Mamdani used his victory speech to call on New York to show the nation “how to defeat the president.” But the following day, even as he discussed plans for “Trump-proofing” the city once he takes office in January, he signaled he was open to working with the White House if it benefited New Yorkers.
Representatives for Mamdani did not comment on Trump’s Sunday remarks. However, his campaign pointed to comments last week in which the mayor-elect said he intended to reach out to the administration because “this is a relationship that will be critical to the success of the city.”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed that Trump was referring to Mamdani and said no meeting date had yet been scheduled.
Trump’s remarks came during broader comments about his willingness to engage internationally as well. He suggested the U.S. could soon hold discussions with Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro following a recent military buildup in the region.
“I’ll talk to anybody,” Trump said.
