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At least 20 percent of New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani’s administrative appointees are tied to anti-Semitic groups, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) reported Monday.
The report found that more than 80 of Mamdani’s more than 400 transition and administrative appointees either have ties to such groups or have a “documented history of making anti-Israel statements”.
The organization said appointees to Mamdani’s transition committee are linked to groups including the pro-Palestine College Activism Network, Students for Justice in Palestine; Jewish Voice for Peace, an American anti-Zionist organization; and Within Our Lifetime, a New York City-based anti-Semitic group “known for leading protests outside synagogues.”
For example, the ADL said at least four appointments are linked to anti-Semitic leader of the Nation of Islam Louis Farrakhan. One appointee, Jacques LeAndre, was quoted as allegedly attending a conference at which Farrakhan condemned “the Jews and their power.”
ADL head warns NYC Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani is ‘clear and present danger’ to Jewish community
Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani speaks to members of the media at Flushing Meadows Corona Park in the borough of Queens, New York, on Wednesday, November 5, 2025. (Adam Gray/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Several other appointees were also cited for statements that appeared to support or justify violence against Israel and the October 7 attacks. According to the ADL, Qazi Fauzia posted on Facebook hours after the attacks that “the protests are [sic] It’s fitting when people are occupied with video footage of the anti-Israel protest taking place that day in Manhattan.
The report continued to identify other appointees who publicly expressed hostility toward Zionism.
Examples include Fahad Ahmed, who reportedly said “zionism is racism“; Ruha Benjamin, who reportedly signed a statement saying Israel was “ideologically founded on Jewish supremacy”; Lisa Ohta, who was accused of mentioning “the genocidal ideology of Zionism”; and Mohammed Karim Choudhary, who reportedly shared a post claiming “Zionists… are worse than Nazis.”
Mamdani’s father says Columbia ‘targeted’ anti-Israel students with anti-Semitic crackdown
A demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a protest on college campuses in Washington, DC on March 23, 2025. (Andrew Thomas/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)
The organization also identified Zakiyah Shakir-Ansari, who was cited for allegedly posting a photo of herself in a camp in front of a banner that displayed an upside-down red triangle, a symbol associated with Hamas, along with the text “Long live the resistance.”
The report also said at least 12 appointees publicly expressed support for anti-Israel campus camps during the spring of 2024, with at least five of them attending protests in person. The ADL highlighted Gianpaolo Baiocchi, who was reportedly arrested at the NYU camp and later claimed no hate speech existed. The ADL refutes that claim, citing pamphlets distributed at the camp that called for “death to Israeli real estate” and “death to America.”
Protesters wave a “Free Palestine” flag on October 4, 2025. (Dan Gaynor)
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Mamdani, who took office on January 1, has previously and repeatedly stressed that he stands against anti-Semitism.
The ADL noted that many of the appointees did not raise concerns and emphasized that at least 25 individuals expressed support for the Jewish community, including Rabbis Joe Potasnik, Felix Matos Rodriguez, Wayne Ho, John King, and Jerry Goldfeder. However, the organization said it was concerned about Mamdani’s team overall.
“Many of Mayor-elect Mamdani’s Transition Committee appointments are inconsistent with his campaign commitments to prioritize the safety of New York’s Jewish community,” the ADL wrote in the report.
Fox News Digital contacted Mamdani for further comment.
