Trump calls Jews who vote for Mamdani ‘stupid’
Frontrunner Zohran Mamdani would be the first Muslim mayor of New York City if he wins
President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office on Oct. 6. Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
By Benyamin Cohen November 4, 2025
President Donald Trump on Tuesday called Jewish New Yorkers who vote for Zohran Mamdani “stupid.” Mamdani, the 34-year-old democratic socialist and critic of Israel, is the frontrunner in the race for mayor of New York City, home to the largest concentration of Jews in the U.S. If he wins, Mamdani would be the first Muslim to hold the office.
“Any Jewish person that votes for Zohran Mamdani, a proven and self professed JEW HATER, is a stupid person!!!” Trump posted on Truth Social, as New Yorkers were heading to the ballot box.
Mamdani responded to the attack on Instagram: “I’m looking forward to being a mayor for every single Jewish voter, whether they’re voting for me, whether they’re voting for someone else, whether they’re not voting at all,” Mamdani said. “They deserve to be celebrated. They deserve to be cherished, and they deserve someone more than just a president who’s looking to try and define what it means to be a good Jewish person in this city or in this country.”
Trump on Monday night endorsed former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who is running as an independent after losing the Democratic primary to Mamdani. “Whether you personally like Andrew Cuomo or not, you really have no choice,” Trump wrote. Cuomo resigned as governor in 2021 after being accused of sexually harassing multiple women while in office. He denied those allegations.
Asked Tuesday about Trump’s assertion that Jews would be “stupid” to vote for his opponent, Cuomo replied: “I don’t know if that’s true.” Nearby, a supporter told Cuomo that the “God of Israel” would help him win, and that people should “not vote for the terrorist.” A Quinnipiac poll released last week found Cuomo leading Mamdani among Jewish voters, 60 percent to 16 percent.
Cuomo asked if he agrees with Trump’s statement this morning that “any Jewish person that votes for Zohran Mamdani, a proven and self professed Jew hater, is a stupid person”?
— Jacob N. Kornbluh (@jacobkornbluh) November 4, 2025
Cuomo: “I don't know if that's true.” pic.twitter.com/Zi9YIE5IEh
A familiar pattern
Trump’s remarks were the latest in a yearslong pattern in which he has equated Jewish identity with political allegiance to him and to Israel, casting dissenters as disloyal or misguided. Since his first term, Trump has frequently questioned why most American Jews vote Democratic, describing it as a betrayal of faith or common sense.
In 2019, he labeled Jewish Democrats “disloyal” and “weak.” During his 2024 campaign, he intensified his attacks, saying that “any Jewish person that votes for Democrats hates their religion” and should be “ashamed of themselves.” At a fundraiser that spring, he went further: “Any Jewish person who votes for a Democrat or votes for Biden should have their head examined.”
After President Joe Biden dropped out of the race and Vice President Kamala Harris replaced him on the Democratic ticket, Trump repeated the line. “If anybody I know is Jewish and they would vote for Kamala over me, they should have their head examined,” he said. Harris’ husband, Doug Emhoff, is Jewish.
In a September 2024 speech, Trump warned that Jews would “have a lot to do with a loss” if he were defeated, and likened the moment to the months before the Holocaust. “You have to defeat Kamala Harris more than any other people on Earth,” he told the audience, and then conflated Israeli and American Jews. “Israel, I believe, has to defeat her.”
Jewish Americans have remained one of the most reliably Democratic constituencies in American politics. In the 2024 election, 71 percent voted for Harris and 26 percent for Trump, according to a post-election survey.
Trump’s strategy of tying Jewish support to a loyalty test for Israel has found its most receptive audience among Orthodox and conservative voters. But his repeated suggestions that Jewish voters are collectively responsible for U.S.-Israel relations, or for his own electoral fate, have previously alarmed many Jewish leaders. The statements have been criticized for perpetuating antisemitic notions of American Jews’ “dual loyalty” to Israel.
Mamdani, for his part, has often had to defend himself against allegations of antisemitism for refusing to outright condemn the slogan “globalize the intifada,” reiterating support for Palestinians in his statement on the Gaza ceasefire, vowing to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he visits New York, and saying he doesn’t recognize Israel as a Jewish state.
He’s also drawn criticism from pro-Israel groups for his support of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement, and praise from progressives who see him as part of a generational shift in Democratic politics. His ascendancy has divided Jews across the country while simultaneously building a coalition of Jewish New Yorkers who support him.
Jacob Kornbluh and Louis Keene contributed to this article.
