Mamdani names veteran team to key city posts ahead of inauguration

Zohran Mamdani announced a slate of experienced officials for his incoming New York City administration ahead of his inauguration, aiming to advance his agenda and to allay concerns about his relative inexperience and progressive politics. He chose to keep Jessica Tisch as police commissioner, a pick he had named in October, and appointed Sherif Soliman to run the city’s Office of Management and Budget, which oversees a budget that exceeds $115 billion.

Mr. Mamdani also tapped Kamar Samuels as schools chancellor for the nation’s largest system — more than 1,500 schools, about 880,000 students and a budget of more than $40 billion — and named Michael Flynn transportation commissioner; Flynn, who worked at the Transportation Department for nearly a decade before joining a consulting firm, will play a key role in the administration’s promises to make buses faster and free.

Other appointments include Lillian Bonsignore as fire commissioner; Leila Bozorg as deputy mayor for housing and planning; Steven Banks as the city’s chief lawyer; Ramzi Kassem as chief legal adviser; Julie Su as the city’s first deputy mayor for economic justice; and Helen Arteaga as deputy mayor for health and human services.

The administration has pledged an expensive expansion of public services, including free buses and child care, and officials note the budget job will be critical amid economic uncertainty. Making buses free, the announcement said, would require City Hall to broker a deal with Gov.

Key Topics

Politics, Zohran Mamdani, New York City, Jessica Tisch, Sherif Soliman, Kamar Samuels