Why Zohran Mamdani may not be sw
Zohran Mamdani, 34, was elected as New York City’s new mayor, becoming the first Muslim, first South Asian, and first Africa-born person to lead the city.
He will be sworn in January 2026 as the 111th mayor, but new research suggests he may actually be the 112th.
Historian Paul Hortenstine found that Matthias Nicolls, long listed as the sixth mayor, “actually served two non-consecutive terms.”
According to typical political rules, split terms should be counted separately, much like presidents with interrupted service.
Because Nicolls’s second term was never included, “every subsequent mayor has been assigned a number one below what it should be.”
The error stems from a misunderstood 17th-century record. Historian Peter R. Christoph had flagged the same issue back in 1989, but the numbering was never changed.
The finding doesn’t affect Mamdani’s authority—only the ceremonial count. Whether the city will update official records remains unclear.
