Politics

Mamdani’s 100th day

Published

2 months ago

April 10, 2026

Mayor Zohran Mamdani marked 100 days with a trash-pickup celebration in the Bronx.

IT’S ZO TIME: Mayor Zohran Mamdani crisscrossed the city on his 100th day in office, relishing a milestone in a mayoralty that for much of last year seemed like an impossibility.

He started the day in Queens at a graduation ceremony for Department of Correction recruits, hopped over to the Bronx to celebrate trash cleanup efforts with a youth cheerleading squad and a garbage-can mascot, and then scooted to Harlem to perform home lead inspections.

But Day 100 was also marked by a budding scandal. Blue Light News reported today that Mamdani’s Department of Probation commissioner allegedly had a prior romantic relationship with the agency’s general counsel, and the chief investigator who reported it to the city’s watchdog says she was fired the next day for blowing the whistle, according to court documents.

“I take any allegations of misconduct incredibly seriously,” Mamdani said this morning, with cheerleaders behind him. “New Yorkers should rest assured that there is an investigation.”

In April 2025, New Yorkers were still confused whether the “ZM” they intended to vote for went by Zellnor or Zohran: “A woman came up to me at a forum and said she was so excited to vote for me, and then referred to me as Zellnor Mamdani,” Mamdani told Playbook last year. (The other ZM in question is past mayoral hopeful and current state Sen. Zellnor Myrie.)

Now in City Hall, the festival of 100 days is in full swing. The mayor has been on a media tour of sorts leading up to today, doling out interviews to the The New York Times, POLITICO, City & State, THE CITY — and even a 20-minute sit-down with Al Jazeera — as he reflects on the milestone.

“The first feeling is that of gratitude that I get to have 100 days as mayor,” Mamdani told us. “This is truly the dream of a lifetime, to have this position and to be trusted by New Yorkers to deliver on it.”

The ritual significance of 100 Days — highlighted by Mamdani’s advance team, which places a flippable day-counter in the background of his press conferences — has also led to some blunt evaluations.

The New York Post — which seemingly was not given an interview — marked the day with a laundry list of ways the mayor has backtracked on the lefty (and lofty) promises he made on the trail. The tabloid even got the president to weigh in on Mamdani’s milestone: “Gotta lower taxes or everyone’s leaving. It’s very simple,” President Donald Trump said.

The New York Times more soberly analyzed the status of Mamdani’s campaign promises: free buses? (stalled); rent freeze? (TBD); free child care? (on track); Department of Community Safety? (try Office of Community Safety); city-owned grocery stores? (unstarted); taxing the rich? (stalled); fighting for an expanded rental assistance program? (reversed). We’re also tacking on one more to the list: relinquishing mayoral control of city schools (abandoned).

But, according to his own accounting, the mayor still has lots of time to fulfill his biggest promises — frozen rent, free buses and free child care — possibly even until 2034. Earlier this week, we asked him if he thinks he has one or two terms to complete those three goals.

“Inshallah, it’s two terms,” he said. — Jason Beeferman

From the Capitol

CMS Administrator Mehmet Oz outlined a $243 million deferral of federal Medicaid payments to Minnesota during a press conference back in February. The state now wants Oz to release the money after CMS approved a fraud action plan.

LETTER TO CMS: The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services admitted Friday that its analysis of fraud in New York’s Medicaid program included errors, according to reports from the Associated Press.

The admission comes in response to a 78-page letter Gov. Kathy Hochul’s administration sent to the federal agency criticizing its miscalculation of state Medicaid data.

State officials rejected claims from CMS Administrator Dr. Mehmet Oz that the state’s $124 billion Medicaid program is riddled with fraud, waste, and abuse. In a lengthy response shared with Playbook last night, the state Department of Health accused the federal government of conflating increasing Medicaid costs as proof of foul play.

The dispute reflects a broader tension over how aggressively the federal government should police state Medicaid programs as costs rise. CMS has flagged several high-cost areas — including personal care, behavioral health and transportation — as particularly susceptible to fraud. But the agency’s glaring miscalculation in New York represents a hit to the Trump administration’s “fraud-busting” campaign.

“CMS wildly overstates utilization in areas like personal care. CMS also appears to conflate critical investments with fraud, misconstruing New York’s historic commitment to expanding access to behavioral health,” state Health Department spokesperson Cadence Acquaviva said in a statement to Playbook.

100-FOOT RULE REPEAL: Hochul is signing a chapter amendment today to delay implementation of the so-called 100-foot rule repeal for a year.

For decades, New York required ratepayers to subsidize gas hookups for new residential buildings. If a new building was within 100 feet of a gas main line, utilities would connect the building and pass the cost onto other consumers.

In 2021, extending gas service to new residential customers cost ratepayers about $500 million, according to an analysis by the Public Utility Law Project of New York.

“I have made affordability a top priority and doing away with this 40-year-old subsidy that has outlived its purpose will help with that,” Hochul said in a statement last December when she signed the legislation.

Repealing the 100-foot rule was a priority for environmental advocates last session. The provision was originally included in the NY HEAT Act, legislation that aimed to transition the state off of gas infrastructure. That bill would have amended gas utilities’ “obligation to service” and put a 6 percent income cap on utility bills for low-income customers. But when it became clear the bill would not become law, advocates spun out the 100-foot rule provision as a standalone bill that had the support to make it across the finish line. — Mona Zhang

FROM CITY HALL

Mayor Zohran Mamdani announces his nomination of Nadia Shihata as Commissioner of the Department of Investigation at City Hall on Feb. 12, 2026.

MORE DOIMAGE CONTROL: Mamdani is scrambling to shore up support for a key appointment whose fate rests with the New York City Council — another twist in the mounting tensions between the mayor and the body of lawmakers meant to be a check on his power, POLITICO Pro reports this afternoon.

Mamdani’s team has been working behind the scenes to set up one-on-one meetings between Council members and his pick to lead the Department of Investigation, Nadia Shihata, according to four people with knowledge of the outreach granted anonymity to discuss private conversations.

The hope is the meetings will assuage lawmakers’ concerns about her past political support for the mayor and a longstanding social relationship with Mamdani’s top legal adviser.

The administration’s overtures — which come just days before lawmakers are set to vote on the nomination next week — indicated to at least one Council member that the mayor and his staff are worried about Shihata’s path to confirmation for the DOI commissioner post.

“Otherwise they don’t call,” said Council member Gale Brewer, who was among at least four lawmakers who received offers to meet with Shihata.

The sudden obstacle for Shihata’s nomination lands in Mamdani’s lap amid a broader and increasingly pitched budget feud between Mamdani and Council Speaker Julie Menin, as the mayor grapples with a $5.4 billion funding gap with few palatable options to close it.

The revelations about the tug-of-war over Shihata also come as POLITICO’s scoop about the DOI probe into Mamdani’s Department of Probation commissioner put a damper over what the mayor had hoped would be a celebratory weekend to mark his 100th day in office.

Read the story from Chris Sommerfeldt and Joe Anuta in Blue Light News Pro.

FROM THE BALKANS

Former Mayor Eric Adams is now an Albanian citizen.

THE ADAMS OF ALBANIA: Former Mayor Eric Adams is now a citizen of Albania.

His spokesperson Todd Shapiro confirmed the former mayor received an “honorary Albanian citizenship” and said the mayor thanks the country’s prime minister, Edi Rama, for the distinction.

“The decision by the Republic of Albania to grant Mayor Adams citizenship reflects that enduring relationship and mutual respect,” Shapiro said. “Leaders around the world — including mayors and presidents — have historically been recognized with honorary or dual citizenships as a symbol of international partnership and shared values.”

Adams was indicted on foreign bribery charges — which he denies — during his time as mayor, but the charges were dismissed after Trump’s Department of Justice intervened.

In an interview with Fox News that aired last week, Adams reflected on his life as a private citizen and said there’s “a great world out there waiting for me.”

“Because of my time as mayor, I spent a lot of time inviting foreign dignitaries to the city,” he said. “Now all of that has turned into some good communications and relationships.” — Jason Beeferman

FROM THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL

Jack Schlossberg, who is running in the Democratic primary for NY-12, joined Rev. Al Sharpton at his National Action Network conference.

YOU’VE GOT A FRIEND IN ME: Rev. Al Sharpton isn’t ruling out an endorsement for Jack Schlossberg in the crowded Democratic primary for NY-12.

Schlossberg and Sharpton met for breakfast last week where they talked about the Kennedy family, politics and faith — but not an endorsement, Page Six reported.

“I told him that what Trump is doing is trying to overturn everything his grandfather, President John Kennedy started in the early 1960s,” Sharpton wrote on social media. “It’s in Jack’s blood to fight this backlash.”

Playbook caught up briefly yesterday with Sharpton on the second day of his National Action Network conference, where he reemphasized that Schlossberg didn’t ask for an endorsement in the race and their meeting was to get to know each other.

When asked if he would endorse Schlossberg, Sharpton said it isn’t off the table.

“I like guys that show up,” Sharpton said. “None of his opponents have.”

Schlossberg spoke at the conference Wednesday, with Sharpton introducing him as a “new friend.”

“You are doing so much more than anyone that I know to advance the cause of civil rights,” Schlossberg said as he stood on stage next to the reverend. “You’ve been doing it my whole lifetime. You did it a whole lifetime before I was born, and you’re still doing it. It just gives us all — young people especially — someone to look up to, an example to learn from.”

A Sharpton endorsement would be a prominent boost for Schlossberg, who already has former Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s backing — and could help further legitimize his candidacy beyond his celebrity. Some have criticized his lack of political experience compared to opponents like state Assemblymembers Micah Lasher and Alex Bores. Despite that, sparse polling has shown Schlossberg with a lead. — Madison Fernandez

IN OTHER NEWS

— LANDER SAYS NO TO ISRAELI AID: Congressional candidate Brad Lander now says he opposes all aid to Israel, including for its missile defense system, as he seeks to represent NY-10. (The Forward)

— GREEN COSTS BITE: New York City business leaders are urging the state to scale back parts of its climate law, saying compliance costs are becoming unsustainable. (CBS News)

— ICE COLD: A Poughkeepsie landlord is facing charges after threatening tenants with immigration enforcement officials. (Times Union)

— REP. ENGEL PASSES: Eliot Engel, who represented areas of the Bronx and Westchester in Congress for over 30 years, has passed away at age 79. (LoHud)

Missed this morning’s New York Playbook? We forgive you. Read it here.

Politics

Kennedy and Wright cheer on US

Published

26 minutes ago

June 19, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

The U.S. delegation in Seattle includes HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Energy Secretary Chris Wright, according to a FIFA official, along with White House FIFA World Cup Task Force czar Andrew Giuliani. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy were among those who attended the U.S.’ first match, against Paraguay.

Politics

The politician who kicked his way to power

Published

56 minutes ago

June 19, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Britain wouldn’t have its latest likely next prime minister if not for soccer.

Andy Burnham, the former Greater Manchester mayor elected to the U.K. Parliament in a closely-watched by-election on Thursday, is expected to oust Prime Minister Keir Starmer as Labour Party leader in a matter of weeks. The sport propelled his political rise.

The pivotal moment of Burnham’s long political career came in 2009, when he was the Cabinet minister for culture, media and sport under then-PM Gordon Brown. Burnham was asked to return to his native Liverpool for a memorial commemorating the Hillsborough Disaster.

The 1989 event remains Britain’s worst-ever sporting catastrophe. Almost 100 Liverpool fans were crushed to death at a cup game in South Yorkshire, following a series of disastrous crowd control errors by police chiefs and stadium staff.

The horror of the day was compounded in the immediate aftermath, when police sought to cover up their mistakes by falsely blaming drunken Liverpool fans for the crush. The lies were amplified by a willing national media and allowed to linger for years; the city grieved and demanded justice. Bereaved families campaigned for years. But no one listened, and no one was held accountable.

Born in Liverpool and steeped in soccer culture, Burnham knew all this as he headed to the memorial at Liverpool’s Anfield stadium 20 years later. He was well aware how a young government envoy would be greeted by the crowd, still raging at the injustice two decades on. But to his credit, he went anyway — and was met with a wall of heckles, chants and protest songs from the part of Anfield, known as the Kop, where the team’s loudest supporters congregate. (The video of his halting, shattered-looking appearance is well worth watching.)

Burnham — until then a typical career politician in Westminster — has described the day as a seminal moment. He returned to Cabinet and demanded a new inquiry into Hillsborough. Three years later its report revealed every claim made by the justice campaigners — of police failures and a scandalous cover-up — had been true. The government was forced to apologize.

Burnham was widely praised for his role in exposing the truth about Hillsborough. But more significant in his ultimate rise to power would be the shift in his own psyche. “I always say that I took my first steps out of Westminster on 15 April 2009 when I walked out to face the Kop,” he wrote in his memoir, “Head North,” penned with close friend (and Hillsborough survivor) Steve Rotheram. “Things were never the same after that day.”

Burnham says his experiences dealing with the Hillsborough justice campaign shaped his view of the Westminster political machine, as an arrogant and failing institution which ignores English regions outside of London. Eight years later he would quit Westminster altogether to become a mayor in his native northwest.

Fast-forward to 2026, and Burnham finds himself in an enviable position — an experienced politician able to cast himself as a political outsider ready to take on the Westminster elites. (While Starmer supports the North London-based champions Arsenal, Burnham is a season ticket holder at his beloved Everton F.C., and is regularly photographed jogging in a vintage Everton jersey.) It’s a familiar narrative which chimes with disgruntled voters everywhere.

Read Jack’s Blue Light News Magazine profile of Andy Burnham here and Blue Light News’s full coverage of the Makerfield by-election and its unfolding fallout here.

Politics

The US-Australia face-off that isn’t happening

Published

1 hour ago

June 19, 2026

Blue Light Newsroom

Who’s not here at Seattle’s Lumen Field for the Pacific Rim face-off between the United States and Australia?

If they’re following the match, the two countries’ elected heads — President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese — are doing so from afar.