But his wife, 28-year-old artist Rama Duwaji, was also poised to make history as she stood next to him, grinning subtly as the crowd screamed.
Although Mamdani’s political ascent has garnered media attention, his romance with Rama is a scene from a movie, starting on a dating app rather than in City Hall.
A match made on hinge
In 2021, when Mamdani had recently been elected to the New York State Assembly, the couple first became friends on Hinge. Mamdani wasn’t exactly seeking attention, and Rama, a Syrian-American illustrator living in Brooklyn, wasn’t familiar with New York politics.
After coffee at the welcoming Yemeni café in Brooklyn called Qahwah House and a stroll around McCarren Park, their first date was delightfully unremarkable. On their second date, Mamdani took Rama on a tour of his Astoria district, the same neighborhood that would one day help make him mayor.
Both were engaged by October 2024.
“Couldn’t possibly be prouder,” Rama wrote on Instagram alongside photos of the couple and a childhood picture of Mamdani.
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Days after declaring their engagement, Mamdani began his mayoral campaign. With white roses and trailing greenery, the couple held their nikah and engagement celebration on a rooftop with a view of the Burj Khalifa in Dubai that December.
“This engagement and Nikkah were more than an event — it was a floral installation set against Dubai’s dusky skyline,” LMF Dubai, the event designer, wrote on Instagram.
A civil ceremony in New York
They formally announced it in a civil ceremony held at the City Clerk’s Office in Lower Manhattan two months later, in February 2025. Later, Mamdani posted pictures from the day along with the caption:
The lead photo captures the couple in a candid black-and-white encounter on the New York City subway at Union Square. Smiling as they held onto a pole, Duwaji stood out in a white dress paired with black boots, clutching a bouquet, while commuters around them went about their day, seemingly unaware they were sharing a train with the city’s future first couple.
“Three months ago, I married the love of my life, Rama, at the City Clerk’s office. Now, right-wing trolls are trying to make this race — which should be about you — about her. Rama isn’t just my wife; she’s an incredible artist who deserves to be known on her own terms. You can critique my views, but not my family.”
Who is Rama Duwaji?
Born in Houston, Texas, Rama moved with her family to Dubai when she was nine. She later went back to the United States to study at Virginia Commonwealth University and graduated from the School of Visual Arts in New York with a master’s degree in illustration.
Her work — featured in The Cut, Vogue, The New Yorker, and BBC — explores themes of identity, womanhood, and displacement.
Her artwork frequently highlights Palestinian issues, Gaza, and Middle Eastern women on Instagram, where she has over 250,000 followers.
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”I believe everyone has a responsibility to speak out against injustice, and art has such an ability to spread it,” Duwaji said in an interview earlier this year.
“With so many people being pushed out and silenced by fear, all I can do is use my voice to speak out about what’s happening in the US and Palestine and Syria as much as I can,” she added.
Sometimes, Rama also enjoys stepping away from her computer work to construct her own ceramics, especially hand-painted blue-and-white plates embellished with her characteristic designs.
Rama had a subtle but significant role in Mamdani’s ascent, even though she shunned the conventional “first lady in waiting” role, campaign speeches, and glossy magazine articles.
She helped develop his campaign’s branding, a vivid blend of Metrocard yellow, Mets blue, and firehouse red, seen across posters and digital commercials statewide.
“She’s been a huge influence on how we present our message,” one campaign staffer said. “Even if she’s not on stage, she’s everywhere.”
From Brooklyn to Gracie Mansion
The couple will soon move into Gracie Mansion, where Rama Duwaji will formally assume the role of First Lady of New York, becoming the first member of Generation Z to do so.
Rushing to social media to celebrate the historic moment, one X user wrote: “If Mamdani wins the election, becoming the city’s first Muslim mayor and its youngest in a century, Duwaji too would be positioned to make and shape history. She would be the first member of Gen Z to serve as New York City’s first lady.”
“Now, that’s exciting!” exclaimed another, while a third added: “The new First Lady of NYC, Rama Duwaji, ladies and gentlemen.”
“First-ever Gen Z First Lady of NY!” gushed a fourth.
She is undoubtedly changing the definition of what it means to be a political partner in the contemporary era, regardless of whether she decides to remain in the background or enter the advocacy space.
Rama Duwaji and Zohran Mamdani are more than just the newest power couple in New York. They’re symbols of a new generation leading with creativity, conviction, and love.
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