Almost half of Israelis won’t go to New York City with Mamdani as mayor

Asked about Mamdani himself, 83% of Israelis surveyed said they view him as antisemitic.

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

New polling suggests the election of Zohran Mamdani as mayor will cause nearly half of Israelis to avoid New York City.

In a nationwide survey conducted Nov. 6, 46% of respondents said they would avoid visiting New York in light of the mayoral election results; 34% said they would travel as usual, and 20% were undecided. The poll sampled 501 adults and carries a ±4.4% margin of error.

Asked about Mamdani himself, 83% of Israelis surveyed said they view him as antisemitic, while 8% disagreed and 9% were unsure. New York—home to the largest Jewish community outside Israel—has long been a favored destination for Israeli tourists, which makes the potential shift in travel habits notable.

Mamdani, a 34-year-old democratic socialist, won Wednesday’s contest after rivals Andrew M. Cuomo and Curtis Sliwa conceded.

In his victory remarks, he pledged to confront antisemitism and presented an inclusive message to Muslim residents, saying City Hall under his leadership would stand with Jewish New Yorkers and affirm a sense of belonging for more than a million Muslims in the city.

However, Jewish critics of Mamdani see his remarks as an attempt to smooth over his image after refusing to condemn the slogan “globalize the intifada,” embracing BDS policy and threatening to have Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrested if he travels to New York.

The poll’s timing—immediately after the vote—captures initial reactions rather than long-term behavior. Still, the results highlight a divide between Israeli public sentiment and parts of the American Jewish electorate, a split that has surfaced repeatedly in recent years over Israel-related politics in major U.S. cities.

Mamdani is due to take office on Jan. 1 for a four-year term.