Despite the creepy smile he always wears in public, New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani is reportedly a “thin-skinned” menace in private.
According to over a dozen anonymous elected officials and consultants who spoke with the New York Post, Mamdani personally contacts his critics (especially fellow elected officials) who question him publicly, holds petty grudges, and often only replies to messages when he’s upset.
One consultant noted that he struggles particularly with criticism from officials he believes he can pressure, because he wants to avoid bad coverage.
“I see more and more he cannot handle criticism, but mainly from elected officials who he thinks he can push around,” an unnamed political consultant admitted to the New York Post.
“The mayor personally reaches out when electeds criticize him publicly. If they speak, then he cares. He cares because he doesn’t want bad press. It shows a sensitivity,” the consultant added.
As an example, after local Jewish leaders urged him to tone down anti-Israel rhetoric following an antisemitic stabbing on the Upper West Side, the mayor called at least one official who attended the related news conference to complain.
Mamdani was especially upset when the official linked the stabbing to a video the mayor had posted days earlier branding Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a “war criminal.”
Benjamin Netanyahu is a war criminal. pic.twitter.com/YRezmW6YVx
— Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani (@NYCMayor) July 22, 2026
According to the Post’s sources, Mamdani also once tried to persuade Queens Borough President Donovan Richards to delete a tweet posted to X in which he’d attacked the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) over their alleged “white supremacy.”
“He’s so thin-skinned and reads everything,” a New York City Council member told the Post. “His security blanket is his phone and the dopamine from how many likes he gets on a post. Seems to keep him going.”
Mamdani even reportedly snapped after City Council member Virginia Maloney merely sarcastically challenged his claim that a budget proposal by lawmakers would cut services.
“I know math is hard,” Maloney tweeted.
The tweet was too much for Mamdani, who reportedly responded by reaching out to her.
I know math is hard, but the @NYCCouncil finance team did the work—digging into the details to find real solutions.
Our budget response clearly says:
❌ NO increasing property taxes in the middle of an affordability crisis
❌ NO raiding the rainy day fund, a tool for true… https://t.co/LZCg8PvwnS— Virginia Maloney (@vmmaloney) April 1, 2026
Insiders who spoke with the Post alleged that this uber-sensitivity is a result of Mamdani’s desire as New York City’s first socialist mayor to protect the DSA.
“He’s the first DSA (mayor) so they have to show he can manage the city, and any time someone puts a dent in that it hurts their cause,” a government insider said.
Another source — a Democrat operative — told the Post that Mamdani is also “tough on staff,” to the point he frequently holds late-night meetings in Gracie Mansion.
Another insider suggested Mamdani’s smile is a lie, in that the mayor privately treats anyone who crosses him with a “cold demeanor.” This despite him publicly acting like nothing at all bothers him — even being vociferously booed.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani was booed off stage Tuesday night while attending one of the city’s biggest pro-police celebrations on Staten Island.
Loud boos and jeers erupted from the crowd before Mamdani could get through his remarks, cutting his appearance short to less than a minute… pic.twitter.com/7RYWbmh2cx
— Fox News (@FoxNews) August 6, 2026
The Post previously reported that Mamdani “fumed in silence” after he was snubbed during the eulogy of Army Sgt. Angel Sarah Rampersad, a New Yorker who was killed during the ongoing Iran War.
Sources added that the only surefire way to pique Mamdani’s attention is with negative news coverage or a critical tweet.
“They only respond when it’s a crisis for them and reaches crisis levels in the press, but before that they don’t return calls, texts or emails,” a Democrat operative said. “He has been known to hold grudges against whoever challenges him or his positions for even some of the smallest of slights, and those people get sent to the back of the line unless he needs something.”
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V. Saxena is a staff writer with a decade of experience as a professional writer, and a lifetime of experience as an avid news junkie. He holds a degree in computer technology from Purdue University. Saxena also contributes to BizPac Review.
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