Zohran Mamdani

You know, one New Yorker spoke to me about how,

Their number one concern was about casinos, you know, and I shared with them that I myself am skeptical of the economic development promises that come with casinos.

And I also know that there's a referendum that was passed by voters that creates the citation of three casinos within New York City.

And I can't.

actually change that myself and the frustration of knowing that this is something that person does not want and you cannot help them.

And that's also part of what it looks like is to be honest with people, even when that honesty isn't what they want to hear from you.

Part of the reason why so many people are disengaged with our politics is

there is a lack of honesty within the way in which we talk about it and the way in which we even explain it.

I think the key thing that I was told again and again is the importance of the team around you.

And I think the other part of the advice that I've received is that you actually listen to people, that you actually bring New Yorkers along with you.

Because our campaign was not just about reaching out to those who haven't voted in a long time.

It was also reaching out to those who haven't voted at all.

And that's an opportunity to show people that political engagement has to extend beyond the ballot box.

It is not just one moment in one year that you come back to every four years.

It is something that requires a participation and engagement.

And in the same way that New Yorkers won this election, not me, New Yorkers will win this agenda, not just me.

Absolutely.

I think you'll see that appointments are not simply a reflection of myself.

And I think there's a tendency sometimes to just look to reproduce yourself, your ideas, your preferences in each and every person you hire.

What you do if you're to do that is create the conditions where everyone in the room