Democratic socialist and New York City mayoral frontrunner Zohran Mamdani is facing renewed scrutiny after a report revealed he identified as both "Asian" and "Black or African American" on his Columbia University application in 2009. This information came to light from a hack of Columbia’s admissions system, with details shared by an anonymous intermediary and partially verified by The New York Times.
Mamdani, 33, who was born in Uganda to Indian parents and raised in Queens, New York, defended his decision, explaining that he aimed to reflect the complexity of his background in a system that didn’t offer nuanced options. He stated, “Most college applications don’t have a box for Indian-Ugandans, so I checked multiple boxes trying to capture the fullness of my background.” He also wrote in “Ugandan” in a separate section of the application.
While Mamdani clarified that he does not consider himself Black or African American, he described himself as “an American who was born in Africa.” The NYT noted that he has not publicly identified as Black outside of the college application context.
At the time of applying, his father, Mahmood Mamdani, was a professor at Columbia—a role he still holds. Despite this connection, Mamdani was rejected by Columbia and instead attended Bowdoin College in Maine, where he majored in Africana studies.
The racial identification might have played a role under Columbia’s now-defunct race-conscious admissions policy. However, Columbia has not confirmed the accuracy of the leaked data, which includes race, test scores, citizenship, and outcomes—but not full applications. Mamdani did not dispute the records when contacted by the NYT.
Throughout his political career, Mamdani has embraced both his South Asian and African heritage. His campaign features outreach in Urdu and Bengali, and he frequently references his Ugandan birthplace and his father’s civil rights activism. His middle name, “Kwame,” honors Ghana’s first Prime Minister, Kwame Nkrumah.
After being elected to the New York State Assembly in 2020, Mamdani supported legislation to expand demographic categories in data collection to include Middle Eastern and North African identities.
As the general election nears, where he will challenge incumbent Mayor Eric Adams, Mamdani’s past—including his racial identification on college forms—has come under increased focus. He also remains a vocal critic of former President Donald Trump, particularly following Trump’s deportation threats, calling out the use of “fear and division” in politics and affirming his stand as a representative of immigrant communities.
