Inside new NYC mayor Zohran Mamdani and wife Rama Duwaji's radical politics
Her social media posts are littered with her art and pro-Palestinian missives
Author of the article:Brad Hunter
Published Nov 05, 2025 • Last updated 17 hours ago • 4 minute read
New York City Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran
New York City Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani stands with his wife Rama Duwaji (L) after delivering remarks at his election night watch party at the Brooklyn Paramount on November 4, 2025 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City.
Political insiders in the Big Apple are claiming radical mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani’s secretive artist wife was the special sauce in his recipe for victory.
Mamdani was elected on Tuesday in a hotly contested election that could have dire consequences for Gotham: Socially, politically and economically.
The Democratic Socialist won the election by targeting affordability, pledging to freeze rent, make every city bus fare-free, and fighting “corporate exploitation.”
But there are palpable fears about what comes next. New Yorkers remember the dark days from the late 1960s to the early 1990s, when the city became a violent cesspool, due in part to the hug-a-thug politics Mamdani embraces.
Other than white Gen Z. women, not everyone is pleased with election outcome in New Yrk. NEW YORK POST
Other than white Gen Z. women, not everyone is pleased with election outcome in New Yrk. NEW YORK POST
At his victory party, only his wife mattered.
“And to my incredible wife, Rama, hayati,” he said, using the Arabic word for “my life.”
“There is no one I would rather have by my side in this moment, and in every moment.”
Expressed support for Hamas
The controversial Mamdani — who has expressed support for the terror cult Hamas, is anti-police and on the far fringe of American politics — has found his soulmate in Rama Duwaji.
The 28-year-old apparently shares her husband’s radical views, and her social media posts are littered with her art and pro-Palestinian missives. The couple has resonated with New York’s Uptown radical chic set, always on the lookout for a new trend.
“She’s our modern-day Princess Diana,” gushed her friend Hasnain Bhatti to The New York Times.
According to the New York Post, Duwaji played a critical role in her husband’s election. Sources told the tabloid she designed his logos and boosted his viral social media campaign. Yet despite her involvement, she has remained an enigma.
Duwaji was born into a Syrian-American family in Houston. When she was around 9 years old, the family moved to Dubai. She later graduated from Virginia Commonwealth University in 2019 with a bachelor’s degree in communication arts. In 2021, she moved to New York City to pursue her artistic career.
Couple met on a dating app
Along the way, she met an obscure New York State Assemblyman named Zohran Mamdani on the dating website Hinge, and it was a love match. Months before he announced his candidacy for Mayor of New York City, the couple were married in a civil ceremony last February at City Hall.
“I’ve known (Mamdani) was going to marry Rama for years, and I was there, at the city clerk’s office with them when it happened. The three of us took the subway from Astoria to City Hall on a rainy day a few months back, and I got to celebrate two of my favourite people officially tying the knot,” photographer friend Kara McCurdy wrote on her website.
While her husband has pursued politics, Duwaji is now celebrated as a kind of commie Coco Chanel and has concentrated on her art, with illustrations appearing in Vogue.
When her hubby clinched the nomination, she wrote on Instagram: “Couldn’t possibly be prouder.”
But her pro-terror views on a conflict 5,000 miles away will be a problem in the largest Jewish city in the world. In early October, she mourned the death of Palestinian influencer Saleh al-Jafarawi, who celebrated the massacre of 1,200 Israelis on Oct. 7, 2023.
She posted an Instagram story with four purple heart emojis. Al-Jafarwi earned the nickname “Mr. FAFO” after he was iced by a rival Palestinian faction. And when she was criticized? Her husband lashed out.
“Three months ago, I married the love of my life, Rama, at the City Clerk’s office. Now, right-wing trolls are trying to make this race — which should be about you — about her,” he wrote on Instagram.
“Rama isn’t just my wife, she’s an incredible artist who deserves to be known on her own terms. You can critique my views, but not my family.”
Eyes socialist paradise for NYC
With her reticence to the spotlight, it isn’t clear what role she will play in the People’s Republic of New York City. Friends say she is excited but “overwhelmed.”
The pair will likely leave their rent-stabilized apartment in Astoria, Queens, for Gracie Mansion in Manhattan, where hizzoner traditionally resides. Mamdani will then attempt to reshape the New York landscape into something resembling a socialist paradise.
Duwaji will be in the shadows, co-piloting the revolution. Her artistic production offers a guidebook about what’s in store for the largest city in the United States.
In May, she released an animated work depicting a young Palestinian girl holding an empty pot with the words, “Not a hunger crisis” emblazoned across the side. The piece then transitions to a view of people above also holding empty pots with the words, “It is deliberate starvation.”
Get it?
“As I was making this, Israel has been bombing Gaza nonstop with consecutive airstrikes,” Duwaji wrote in the caption.
Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran
Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani holds hands with his wife Rama Duwaji after they voted at a polling location at Frank Sinatra School of Arts in the Queens borough of New York City on November 4, 2025.
Both Mamdani and Duwaji insist they aren’t antisemitic, although he has vowed to use the NYPD to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he ever visits.
“I’ve said at every opportunity that there is no room for antisemitism in this city, in this country. I’ve said that because that is something I personally believe,” Mamdani told reporters last week.
What isn’t clear is whether the youngest first lady in New York City history feels the same way.
bhunter@postmedia.com
@HunterTOSun
40K likes, 275 comments - ramaduwaji on May 16, 2025: "As I was making this, Israel has been bombing Gaza nonstop with consecutive airstrikes. Keep your eyes on Gaza and support @goprojecthope ❤️🩹".
instagram.com
Rasha Abdulhadi's impactful message emphasizes the importance of taking action against genocide. Learn how small actions can add up and find inspiration to make a difference in your community and the world. This video explores the nuances of individual agency in creating change and provides...
instagram.com
40K likes, 401 comments - ramaduwaji on September 1, 2025: "Things I saw in August that made me want to make art: 1 - The ceramic sculpture ‘History of Time’ by Dimitar Lukanov at Terminal 4 in JFK 2 - Incredible linework and sense of space by @gutebesserung 3 - A vintage lamp with a...
instagram.com
wikipedia.org
Zohran Mamdani’s artist wife Rama Duwaji helped design the Democratic socialist’s logos — but has been noticeably absent from his entire mayoral campaign.
nypost.com
Political insiders in the Big Apple say radical new mayor Zohran Mamdani's secretive artist wife was the sauce in victory. Read about her
torontosun.com
