White House Reacts to Republican Calls for Zohran Mamdani’s Deportation

On Monday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt responded to a question about some Republican calls for the deportation of New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani.

Fox News’ Peter Doocy asked Leavitt, “Does President Trump want Zohran Mamdani deported?”

Leavitt lightly laughed and responded in part, “I haven’t heard him say that. I haven’t heard him call for that, but he certainly doesn’t want this person to be elected.”

Mamdani, a 33-year-old self-described democratic socialist, declared victory in New York City’s Democratic mayoral primary last week after former governor Andrew Cuomo conceded the race. He would be the city’s first Muslim and Indian American mayor if elected in November.

Mamdani was born in Kampala, Uganda, to Indian parents and lived briefly in South Africa before moving to New York City when he was seven. He became an American citizen in 2018, shortly after graduating college.

Doocy followed up with a question about GOP Rep. Andy Ogles of Tennessee’s calls for denaturalization proceedings due in part to rap lyrics Mamdani allegedly wrote in 2017 that linked the mayoral candidate to “terrorism.”

He asked, “Does Trump think that’s a worthwhile use of the attorney general’s time?”

Leavitt replied, “Well, I’ll let the president speak to that. I have not seen those claims, but surely, if they are true, it’s something that should be investigated.”

This is a breaking news story. Updates to follow.