Zohran Mamdani

Zohran Kwame Mamdani is an Indian-Ugandan-American politician, housing counselor, and hip-hop artist. He is the Democratic nominee for the 36th district of the New York State Assembly after defeating incumbent Democrat Aravella Simotas in the 2020 primary.[1]

Zohran Mamdani
Personal details
BornKampala, Uganda
Political partyDemocratic
Other political
affiliations		Democratic Socialists of America
EducationBowdoin College
Occupationpolitician

Early life and education

Mamdani is the son of academic Mahmood Mamdani, the director of the Makerere Institute of Social Research (MISR), and filmmaker Mira Nair.[2] Born and raised in Kampala, Uganda, Mamdani moved to New York City when he was seven.[3] Mamdani graduated from Bowdoin College in 2014 and worked as a foreclosure prevention counselor before running for office.[4] Under the name Mr. Cardamom, Mamdani has released numerous hip-hop songs, most notably "Nani" (2019).[5]

Political career

In 2019, Mamdani announced his campaign for New York State Assembly in the 36th district, which encompasses Astoria and Long Island City in Queens.[6] During the campaign, Mamdani was endorsed by the Democratic Socialists of America[7] and ran on statewide rent control, fare-free transit, and single-payer healthcare in New York.[8] Mamdani's narrow victory over four-term incumbent Aravella Simotas took almost a month to call.[9]

References
  1. "Zohran Mamdani Unseats Aravella Simotas In Astoria Assembly Race". Astoria-Long Island City, NY Patch. 2020-07-22. Retrieved 2020-07-22.
  2. "My son is not a firang, we are desi: Mira Nair". Hindustan Times. 2013-05-16. Retrieved 2020-07-22.
  3. "About Zohran Kwame Mamdani". Zohran For Assembly. Retrieved 2020-07-22.
  4. "Home Foreclosure Specialist Aims to Take Fight For Housing & Racial Justice from Astoria to Albany". Retrieved 2020-07-22.
  5. Rayner, Alex (2019-05-10). "How Mr Cardamom convinced 85-year-old Madhur Jaffrey to swear". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2020-07-22.
  6. "NYC Primary Election 2020: Zohran Mamdani Vies For Simotas' Seat". Astoria-Long Island City, NY Patch. 2020-06-09. Retrieved 2020-07-22.
  7. i_beebe (2020-06-24). "Another big night for the DSA". CSNY. Retrieved 2020-07-22.
  8. "Issues". Zohran For Assembly. Retrieved 2020-07-22.
  9. "Zohran Mamdani Unseats Aravella Simotas In Astoria Assembly Race". Astoria-Long Island City, NY Patch. 2020-07-22. Retrieved 2020-07-22.
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