President Donald Trump threatened the legislator of the state of New York, Zohran Mamdani, with arrest if the alleged Democratic candidate for the mayor of New York City challenges immigration and customs compliance operations.
The president also continued to claim that the 33 -year -old Democratic socialist is a “communist” while talking with journalists on Tuesday at the new migrant detention center “Aligator Alcatraz” in the Everglades of Florida.
President Donald Trump’s president speaks during a round table while visiting a migrant detention center, called “Aligator Alcatraz”, located at the Site of the Training and Transition Airport of Dade-Collier in Ochopee, Florida, July 1, 2025.
Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP through Getty Images
When a journalist asked him what his message is for Mamdani, after he said in a Victoria speech after the primaries of Mayor Democrats in New York City that he “would prevent masked ice agents from deporting our neighbors,” Trump replied: “Well, then we will have to arrest it.”
“Look, we don’t need a communist in this country, but if we have one, I will watch it very carefully in the name of the nation,” Trump continued.
Trump also referred to false statements that Mamdani is in the country illegally.
“Many people say they are illegally,” Trump said. “Let’s see everything. Ideally, it will be much less than a communist. But at this time he is a communist. That is not a socialist.”
Born in Uganda, Mamdani has lived in the United States since he was 7 years old and became a naturalized citizen in 2018.
When he left the White House on Tuesday, Trump continued his attack against Mamdani following the primary, calling him a “total work” and “bad news” and reiterating his false statement that the politician is communist.
“I think I will have a lot of fun with him, seeing him, because he has to go through this building to get his money,” Trump said after threatening to retain funds from New York if Mamdani does not “do the right thing.”
Candidate for Mayor’s Office of New York, state representative Zohran Mamdani speaks with the senior political correspondent of ABC News Rachel Scott in New York City, on June 25, 2025.
ABC News
Mamdani responded to Trump in a statement on Tuesday, qualifying his comments as “intimidation.”
“Their statements not only represent an attack against our democracy, but an attempt to send a message to all New Yorkers who refuse to hide in the shadows: if you speak, they will come for you. We will not accept this intimidation,” Mamdani said.
When asked about Trump’s comments on social networks calling him a “communist lunatic” in an interview with ABC News last week, Mamdani shrugged from the epithet, saying that he would encourage Trump to learn about his policies, and that he would work with Trump in affordability but resist the deportation plans of the president.
“The next mayor of New York City will have to work with the Trump administration. Are you willing to do that? Will you do it?” ABC News senior political correspondent, Rachel Scott, asked.
“I will work with the Trump administration when it is for the benefit of New Yorkers,” Mamdani said. “My approach will never be reflective, either in agreement or opposition, but it is at the expense of the New Yorkers that I am running to serve, then, I will not work with the administration to damage the people I seek to represent.”
Mamdani also responded to Trump’s attacks during a interview In “Meet The Press” of NBC on Sunday. When asked how he responds to being a communist, Mamdani said: “I am not.”
“I have already had to start getting used to the fact that the president will talk about how I see myself, how dreams, where I am, who I am. Ultimately, because he wants to distract from what I am fighting,” Mamdani said. “And I am struggling for the workers who made a campaign to empower that it has since betrayed.”
New York, New York – June 24: Candidate for Mayor’s Office of New York, state representative Zohran Mamdani (D -ny) talks to followers during a night meeting of elections in The Greats of Craft LIC on June 24, 2025 in the neighborhood of Long Island City of the queens in New York City.
Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images
The New York City Elections Board published the results of the voting tabulation of election classified on Tuesday, a week after the initial results that only reflected the first -option candidates of the voters showed Mamdani with about 44% of the votes and Cuomo with around 36%.
Mamdani now leads former governor Andrew Cuomo for 12 points, 56% to 44%, in Democratic primaries, according to The updated results.
It is possible that these are not the final margins, since the cured ballots arrive before the election board certifies the elections on July 15, although subsequent updates are not expected to change who is at the top. The current mayor Eric Adams will apply as independent, while Cuomo will also apply as an independent in the vote of “Fight and Deliver”, a source close to the campaign confirmed to ABC News. Curtis Sliwa, who also ran for mayor against Adams four years ago, will be the republican candidate.
The election of mayor of New York City is scheduled to occur on November 4.
ABC News’ Oren Openheim, Brittony Shepherd and Lalee Contribution to this report.
