New York City’s incoming mayor, Zohran Mamdani, will take office on January 1 through an inauguration unlike any the city has seen in recent memory, one that blends tradition with public spectacle, celebration and symbolism.
From a midnight oath to a daytime block party along the Canyon of Heroes, and from praise for inclusivity to sharp questions about antisemitism, Mamdani’s entry into City Hall is already setting the tone for his administration.
A two-part inauguration
Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani will officially assume office at midnight on January 1, when New York Attorney General Letitia James administers the oath of office in a private ceremony attended by his family. Later that day, Mamdani will take the oath again, this time publicly, during a ceremony on the steps of City Hall, with Senator Bernie Sanders presiding.
The daytime ceremony will be Mamdani’s formal installation as New York City’s 111th mayor, alongside the swearing-in of Public Advocate Jumaane Williams and City Comptroller-elect Mark Levine.
Breaking from the ticketed, closed-off inaugurations of the past, Mamdani’s team is expanding the celebration far beyond City Hall Plaza. Traditionally limited to around 4,000 invited guests, this year’s inauguration will extend along Broadway through the Canyon of Heroes, allowing tens of thousands of New Yorkers to participate without tickets. The citywide block party will be open to anyone who registers through the transition team’s website, transition2025.com/inauguration.
The goal, Mamdani said, is simple, “to ensure that all New Yorkers are able to take part in ushering in a new era for New York City.”
What to expect on January 1 ?
The public inauguration ceremony begins at 1pm on January 1, though attendees are advised to arrive between 11 am and noon for the best viewing.
General entrance: Liberty Street and Broadway
ADA access: Barclay Street and Broadway
The ceremony will feature music, performances, interfaith elements, and remarks from all three elected officials. However, the celebration comes with strict limitations, no food will be sold, no portable bathrooms will be available, strollers, coolers, chairs, blankets, and umbrellas are prohibited. There will be no heating tents, regardless of winter temperatures Guests are encouraged to bring snacks or shop nearby. It also remains unclear, how many police officers will staff the event, whether outgoing Mayor Eric Adams will attend.
Will Eric Adams show up?
Adams, who has been openly critical of Mamdani’s politics, previously expressed concern that Mamdani’s supporters could be “nasty” at the inauguration.
“That’s a special day for him, and if I’m going to add in any way to a disruptive atmosphere, of the yells and the screams, I don’t want to do that,” Adams said earlier this month to New York Times.
But in a later interview, he struck a softer tone. “I would love to go and show my support of the smooth transition of power,” Adams said. For Mamdani’s supporters, the inauguration represents more than ceremony.
Alan Faz, a 29-year-old engineer from Fort Worth, Texas, is traveling 1,600 miles, carefully budgeting every step, to be there. Sleeping on a friend’s couch in New Jersey, then an Airbnb in Brooklyn, Faz splurged on a Times Square hotel room for New Year’s Eve using saved points, just to ensure he could reach City Hall on Jan. 1. “I want to be a part of this shift, I want to be present for this,” he told New York Times. “I think this moment is important enough for me to make that effort.”