Menin and Mamdani find common ground

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and presumptive City Council Speaker Julie Menin appeared together for their first joint press conference on Monday, signaling a desire to work together – despite underlying tensions. 

While they’ve largely played nice throughout the transition and the last few days, Mamdani and Menin are opposed in several areas, perhaps the most glaring difference being their position on Israel. Menin, who will be the City Council’s first Jewish speaker, told the New York Post in an interview published Monday she was “extremely concerned” about Mamdani’s repeal of some of his predecessor’s executive orders in support of Israel. There’s also the fact that Menin reportedly pitched herself as a check on the lefty then-incoming mayor while running for speaker – while Mamdani lobbied behind the scenes for her competitors to win instead. Menin also declined to endorse Mamdani for mayor even after he secured the Democratic nomination.

But flanked by Menin, Attorney General Letitia James and other local elected officials at an outdoor gym in Long Island City, Mamdani made it clear that tackling illegal subscription tricks and hidden “junk fees” tacked onto purchases like concert tickets or gym memberships is a shared priority. 

He signed two executive orders – one establishing a task force led by Deputy Mayor of Economic Justice Julie Su and Department of Consumer and Worker Protection Commissioner Sam Levine to combat hidden junk fees, the other directing the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection to monitor and enforce violations tied to illegal subscription tricks. The latter also urged the agency to make recommendations to the City Council on how they can aid in this effort policy-wise. The changes, according to Mamdani, will further his affordability agenda, ultimately saving New Yorkers money. 

For all of Menin and Mamdani’s ideological differences, worker and consumer protections are an area of an alignment that makes sense for the two leaders. Menin used to lead the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection and was chair of the City Council committee on Consumer and Worker Protection, making her well-suited to partner with Mamdani’s efforts. On Monday, she praised the mayor’s focus on the issue. 

“What I’m most excited about is the partnership between the City Council and the new administration around consumer and worker protection,” she said, pointing to legislation she introduced last year aimed at curbing dynamic pricing in food establishments as another example. “We jointly are going to have some of the most aggressive consumer and worker protections in the city.”

Mamdani in turn acknowledged Menin’s expertise. “That’s also part of why I’m so appreciative of the partnership in Speaker Menin and the fact that her background stems in this very kind of work,” he said. “Ensuring, as she said, that this city has the strongest consumer and worker protections in the city is not something that can be done alone.” 

Mamdani and Menin’s relationship will be closely watched in the coming weeks as they sink into their responsibilities. Their predecessors, former City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams and former Mayor Eric Adams, had plenty in common when they started out – both Black moderates with a slew of shared goals. They even attended the same high school, albeit several years apart. But the relationship gradually soured as the City Council battled the Adams administration over budget cuts and vetoes, then fully went up in flames amid the former mayor’s legal troubles. 

As she was leaving Monday’s press conference, Menin highlighted other areas of agreement instead. She said that she and Mamdani have had “incredibly productive conversations” about the work ahead – particularly in terms of building more affordable housing and facilitating universal child care.

“There’s a lot of commonality around the affordability agenda and lastly around lowering skyrocketing health care costs which is something that I have focused on,” Menin said.