Trump threatened to cut federal funding to NYC as Mamdani ran for mayor. Since then, the two have gotten along surprisingly well.
Yuri Gripas/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Zohran Mamdani and Donald Trump are political opposites.
Yet somehow, the president and the NYC mayor have managed to maintain a good relationship.
Here's how that relationship has evolved over time.
It may just be the strangest relationship in American politics.
President Donald Trump and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani seem to get along surprisingly well, despite deep ideological differences between the two.
Trump's called Mamdani a Communist. Mamdani's called Trump a fascist. So what explains their bromance?
"We're both from the same city," Mamdani said in an interview with NBC in April, adding that his conversations with Trump were "granular, about even the things as specific as zoning law changes in Midtown Manhattan."
As Mamdani's star rose in the Big Apple, Trump threatened to cut federal funding to the city if the Democratic socialist won the mayoral election.
But once Mamdani was elected, the two struck up an unexpectedly cordial relationship, and they've now met twice in the Oval Office.
Here's how their relationship has changed over time.
June 2025: Trump weighs in on Mamdani's primary victory, calling him a "Communist lunatic"
Mamdani addresses supporters after winning the NYC mayoral primary on June 24, 2025.
Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
Trump's first public comments about Mamdani came in June, the day after the Democratic-socialist state assemblyman pulled off an upset victory in the Democratic primary for New York City mayor.
"It's finally happened, the Democrats have crossed the line," Trump wrote. "Zohran Mamdani, a 100% Communist Lunatic, has just won the Dem Primary, and is on his way to becoming Mayor."
Trump added that Mamdani "looks TERRIBLE" and that "his voice is grating."
"This is not the first time that President Trump is going to comment on myself, and I encourage him — just like I encourage every New Yorker — to learn about my actual policies to make the city affordable," Mamdani told ABC News in response.
Summer 2025: Trump repeatedly threatens to cut federal funding to NYC if Mamdani wins
Trump speaking to reporters at the White House in June 2025.
Hu Yousong/Xinhua via Getty Images
As it became clearer that Mamdani was on his way to becoming mayor, Trump repeatedly threatened to try to cut off federal funding to New York City if he were elected.
"He is going to have problems with Washington like no Mayor in the history of our once great City," Trump wrote on Truth Social in September. "Remember, he needs the money from me, as President, in order to fulfill all of his FAKE Communist promises. He won't be getting any of it, so what's the point of voting for him?"
Though the move would likely face legal challenges, it nonetheless posed a serious challenge for the city.
According to the New York City Comptroller's Office, 8.3% of New York City's fiscal year 2025 budget came from the federal government, totaling $9.6 billion.
November 2025: Trump endorses Andrew Cuomo on the eve of the election
Former Gov. Andrew Cuomo speaks at an event in November 2025.
Chary Triballeau / AFP via Getty Images
In a last-ditch bid to stop Mamdani, Trump endorsed Andrew Cuomo, a former governor who had lost the primary to Mamdani only to mount an independent bid in the general election.
That endorsement came despite years of acrimony between the two men.
"Whether you personally like Andrew Cuomo or not, you really have no choice," Trump wrote on Truth Social the day before the election. "You must vote for him, and hope he does a fantastic job. He is capable of it, Mamdani is not!"
November 2025: Mamdani wins and challenges Trump: "Turn the volume up"
Mamdani on election night in November 2025.
Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis via Getty Images
Despite Trump's efforts, Mamdani won the election.
And in his victory speech on election night, he offered a provocative message directed toward the president.
"Donald Trump, since I know you're watching, I have four words for you: Turn the volume up," Mamdani said.
November 2025: Trump meets with Mamdani — and they unexpectedly hit it off
Trump and Mamdani in the Oval Office on November 21, 2025.
Demetrius Freeman/The Washington Post via Getty Images
After Mamdani won, Trump invited the newly elected mayor to the Oval Office. Despite their differences, they hit it off.
"I think you're going to have, hopefully, a really great mayor," Trump said at the time. "He's going to surprise some conservative people, actually."
Trump heaped praise on Mamdani, and the two emphasized their shared points of agreement: affordability and the price of energy in the city.
"We spoke about rent, we spoke about groceries, we spoke about utilities," Mamdani said. "We spoke about the different ways in which people are being pushed out."
February 2026: Mamdani and Trump meet for a second time
Trump holding a mock-up of a newspaper made by Mamdani's team at a meeting in February 2026.
New York City Mayor's Office
A little over a month into Mamdani's term, he visited Trump in the Oval Office again.
This time, he brought props: a mock-up of a copy of the New York Daily News reading "Trump to City: Let's Build."
It was a play on an old spread from the same paper in 1975, which read "Ford to City: Drop Dead." That story was about President Gerald Ford's refusal to provide federal aid to the city during a fiscal crisis at the time.
The two discussed a proposal to bring federal investment to a potential new housing development in Sunnyside Yard, a railyard in Queens.
"New York City is facing a generational affordability challenge," Mamdani said in a statement at the time. "Working families are being priced out of the neighborhoods they built. To meet this moment, we need a true federal partner prepared to invest boldly and act urgently."
April 2026: Trump says Mamdani is "destroying" NYC amid wealth tax proposal
Trump at an Oval Office event in April 2026.
Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images
Trump had largely held off on criticizing Mamdani since he took office. In April, that changed.
"Sadly, Mayor Mamdani is DESTROYING New York! It has no chance! The United States of America should not contribute to its failure," Trump wrote on Truth Social. "It will only get WORSE. The TAX, TAX, TAX Policies are SO WRONG."
The post came amid a broader backlash, particularly from wealthy people, to Mamdani's proposed tax on second homes worth more than $5 million.