Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic Socialist assembly member from Queens who championed marijuana legalization in New York State, is now on track to become the city’s next mayor — and he’s never shied away from his personal connection to cannabis.
Mamdani, 33, won the Democratic Party primary for the 2025 New York City mayoral race earlier this month, positioning him as the likely successor to Mayor Eric Adams, whose scandal-plagued tenure ended in an aborted independent run. In a city where Democrats dominate the electorate, the primary victory all but secures Mamdani’s path to City Hall in 2026.
A prominent supporter of the 2021 Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act (MRTA), Mamdani was vocal — and playful — in his advocacy for legalization when the bill was signed into law by then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo. “I’m proud to be here today to debate the adult use of marijuana – also known as loud, Sour D, herb, Mary Jane, kush, green, pot, weed, zaza, a jazz cigarette and marijuana,” Mamdani said on the Assembly floor during the 2021 vote.
Countering critics who tied cannabis use to “lawlessness” or laziness, he added: “Smoking or ingesting marijuana may also lead to you becoming an elected official.” After the bill passed, Mamdani exuberantly posted online, “It may be 3/31 legislatively, but today is 4/20 NY!”
In a 2024 profile, City & State New York reported that Mamdani “enjoys cannabis personally.” And at the October 16 mayoral debate, when asked whether he had purchased products at a legal dispensary, Mamdani smiled broadly before replying, “I have. I’ve purchased marijuana at a legal cannabis shop.”
His candor stands in stark contrast to many politicians who support reform but shy away from personal acknowledgment. Whether his past use continues today remains unknown, but his policy stance is clear: New York’s cannabis legalization represents not just a victory for social justice, but a cornerstone of his progressive identity.
If elected, Mamdani will become New York City’s 111th mayor — and its first to openly embrace cannabis as both a consumer and policymaker.
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