“My friends, we have toppled a political dynasty,” said Zohran Mamdani on Tuesday evening, after being elected mayor of New York City. Mamdani enjoyed a resounding victory after running an “impressive campaign” (to borrow former President Barack Obama’s phrase) that earned him the Democratic nomination earlier this year. At 34, Mamdani is the youngest mayor in a century—a Millennial two generations younger than his opponents, Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa, 71, and former New York governor Andrew Cuomo, 67, a Democrat who ran as an independent. (Cuomo resigned from his former post in 2021 following sexual misconduct allegations.)
This was the most closely watched race for mayor in New York City in recent memory, with a record-breaking turnout. Mamdani, who has served as a New York State Assembly member representing Astoria since 2021, will be the first Muslim and South Asian to hold the office and the second democratic socialist after David Dinkins in 1990. His campaign talking points included expanding affordable housing, implementing rent freezes, creating city-operated grocery stores, and making public buses free.
Just how different are Mamdani and his 28-year-old wife, the illustrator Rama Duwaji, from their predecessors? Let’s start with their clothes. On Tuesday night, Mamdani donned his usual suit: slim-cut and well-tailored though not too crisp; single-breasted and a little wrinkled—the look of a man-of-the-people who’s been working all day, just like the rest of us. “I would say my personal style is a reflection of who I am and myself as a New Yorker,” Mamdani told GQ earlier this year. “And then, as a politician, there is also a specific formality to how I dress for a lot of days of the week,” he added. “There’s the suits that I bought in a store, and there’s the suit that I bought on 31st Avenue, and a totally bootleg street sale, and they all work.” He named Uniqlo his favorite store in the city because it’s so “dependable,” in addition to a military store in Astoria. Unlike many of his fellow politicians, Mamdani doesn’t wear a flashy watch: his Casio timepiece was a gift from his wife.
Duwaji, for her part, wore an elegant top with jacquard accents by the London-based Palestinian-Jordanian designer Zeid Hijazi, who draws inspiration “from Palestinian folklore, rebellion, and Arab futurism,” according to his website, paired with a velvet and lace skirt by the New York-born and based Ulla Johnson, a designer known for her bohemian flair. Her look was finished with black kitten heel boots and earrings, these last by American jeweler Eddie Borgo, who was a runner-up for the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund in 2010. Above all, Duwaji looked like herself—a young, creative woman in her 20s dressed in her generation’s definition of a professional and put-together look. No pantsuits or sleeveless sheaths—at least not yet.
