NEW YORK MAYOR Zohran Mamdani has said Irish people should decide for themselves on a united Ireland as he met with Taoiseach Micheál Martin, telling reporters self-determination “should be extended to the Irish”. 

“It is for them to decide, 26 plus six, what it answers,” the 34-year-old socialist mayor told reporters as he left the New York Irish Center in Long Island City.

He later added: “I trust the Irish to make that decision”.

Mamdani had joined the Taoiseach at the Irish centre in Long Island City on Wednesday afternoon, where the pair called bingo numbers for a weekly meet-up for senior Irish-American citizens.

Are you making these up?, the mayor asked the Taoiseach at one point as he called out the traditional bingo rhymes. The Journal The Journal

Mamdani, who has been a vocal supporter of Palestine, and was just yesterday accused by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of being a Hamas supporter, also complimented Ireland for its support of Palestine.

A soccer fan, who recently backed Dublin community-owned football club Bohemian FC, the mayor was asked by a reporter if he would encourage Irish people not to watch the controversial upcoming Nations League Ireland versus Israel match. 

The mayor politely declined to give a view.

“No, what I would say is that I appreciate the Irish people, and I actually mentioned this to the Taoiseach as well, that when we’re thinking in New York City as to what is an example of solidarity, it often comes to answer of: the Irish.

Not only have the Irish stood up for dignity and a real belief in human rights, they’ve applied it to Palestinians when so many people draw a line and refuse to do so.

“So I’m truly in appreciation. I will leave that question to the Irish,” Mamdani said.

The mayor, who, like Taoiseach Micheál Martin, has often been referred to as a ‘Trump whisperer’ for his cordial relationship with the US President, was also asked what his secret is for dealing with Trump’s volatility.

“Well, I think the thing that we have in our favour in our city is that the president comes from this city.

“We share a love of this city, and so the conversations that we have are bound by that point of agreement, even amidst many other disagreements,” was Mamdani’s response.

Bingo!

It was a short visit for Mamdani and the Taoiseach to the Irish centre, where Mamdani was presented with Ogham artwork by the centre’s staff before he and the Taoiseach departed for a trip on the subway. 

Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Taoiseach Micheál Martin Irish Government Irish Government

The mayor was given a warm reception at the centre, with executive director George Heslin telling Mamdani that while it was his first visit, they had screened a film by his award-winning mother, Mira Nair, two years ago.

“I feel we have welcomed the spirit of your family here already… It feels like we are welcoming you home,” Heslin said. 

Presenting Mamdani with the artwork, Heslin said: 

“I would like to say how lucky we are that your mom and dad, a professor of anthropology at Columbia University, brought a young seven-year-old boy to New York City.

“And only 28 short years later, he would lead our great city and remind us daily, New York will remain a city of immigrants, a city built by immigrants, powered by immigrants, and as of 2026, led by an immigrant.”

As Mamdani and Martin made their way to the subway, the mayor told reporters it was “an honour” to have the Taoiseach in New York.

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As they walked the several blocks towards the subway, the Taoiseach explained the history of the GAA to Mamdani, who expressed an interest in attending an All-Ireland final after being invited by the Taoiseach.

During a seven-stop subway ride, the two leaders were interrupted several times by New Yorkers asking for selfies with the mayor.

The Taoiseach referenced travelling to New York while health minister to “learn lessons” before implementing the smoking ban in Ireland. “I’ve often said I did my first pub crawl as a minister in New York,” the Taoiseach said.

“Feel free to come back anytime,” Mamdani replied.

The Taoiseach said he explained to the New York mayor that Ireland was planning to build the €19 billion MetroLink, saying “any expertise we can get from the United States in building tunnels we’ll take.”

The pair also discussed housing, which is as much of an issue in New York as it is in Ireland.

“The housing issue is our number one challenge and priority, we’re making progress. We’re building houses at the fastest rate in Europe, but it’s not enough,” Martin said.

“In many ways we’re facing a similar challenge, for us the most pressing issue is also housing,” Mamdani said when asked what lessons Ireland could learn from New York in tackling its housing shortage.

“We are looking to build more housing in our city than we’ve seen in the last 70, 80 years…So this will be our focus, we know it will be yours,” he said.

Mamdani made history in November 2025 when he was elected as the first Muslim mayor of New York, becoming the youngest mayor the city has had in 100 years. 

Longford woman Christine Burns, with a photo of herself at 19 - the age she was when she moved to New York. The Journal The Journal

Back at the Irish centre, many of the senior citizens were delighted to have met the Taoiseach, who spent time taking photos and chatting to attendees ahead of the mayor’s arrival. 

The mayor was also a hit with the seniors, with one woman remarking, “He has a beautiful smile”, over cheers as the mayor made his way up to the bingo console with the Taoiseach.