Zohran Mamdani denies that he wants to defund the police following officer’s death

New York City Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani has long been a critic of law enforcement and repeatedly called for police to be defunded.

However, the far-left candidate has since been forced to reverse his stance in the face of crushing criticism. 

Mamdani speaks up following death of NYPD officer

According to the New York Post, Mamdani declared during a press conference on Wednesday that he is “not running to defund the police.”

The Democratic nominee’s statement came hours after NYPD officer Didarul Islam was killed in a Midtown Manhattan mass shooting.

Fox News reported that Mamdani also issued a statement via social media, saying that he is “[g]rateful for all of our first responders on the ground.”

“I’m heartbroken to learn of the horrific shooting in Midtown and I am holding the victims, their families, and the NYPD officer in critical condition in my thoughts,” he insisted.

Mamdani has put up multiple anti-police social media

Yet Fox News noted how some social media users voiced skepticism over Mamdani’s sincerity and pointed to a post he put up five years ago which read, “Queer liberation means defund the police.”

Queer liberation means defund the police. https://t.co/cuuwBI9dsv

— Zohran Kwame Mamdani (@ZohranKMamdani) November 6, 2020

That same year saw Mamdani complain about what he regarded as excessive funding for the NYPD in a later post, writing, “All this misery. All for money.”

“In the last budget, the City Council tried to make the NYPD reduce its overtime budget by half. They simply refused. There is no negotiating with an institution this wicked [and] corrupt. Defund it. Dismantle it. End the cycle of violence,” he went on to add.

Police union head says Mamdani will push police officers “out the door”

Patrick Hendry serves as president of the Police Benevolent Association, and he told the Post earlier this month that Mamdani will exacerbate the NYPD’s staffing shortage.

“We need a mayor who will speak up for police officers, and treat us and pay us like the professionals we are,” Hendry asserted.

The police union head then went on to allege that Mamdani has an “extremist attitude” which will push police officers “out the door.”

“We can’t afford to have a mayor who ignores the problem or tries to take us backward. We need a mayor who will speak up for police officers, and treat us and pay us like the professionals we are,” Hendry declared.

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