A day after Mamdani won the mayoral race, FDNY Commissioner Robert Tucker said Mamdani had made an “emotional decision” to resign.
President Trump praises Mamdani after meeting at the White House
President Donald Trump said he would feel “very comfortable” in New York after meeting with Mayor-elect Zoran Mamdani.
NEW YORK – The New York City fire chief announced on November 26 that he is retiring from the department due in part to Mayor-elect Zoran Mamdani’s criticism of Israel.
A day after Mamdani won the Nov. 4 mayoral election, FDNY Commissioner Robert Tucker said he had made the “emotional decision” to resign from the nation’s largest fire department.
Mr. Tucker is the highest-profile city leader to resign ahead of Mr. Mamdani’s Jan. 1 inauguration. Mr. Tucker, who is Jewish, told CBS News on Nov. 26 that he resigned because of his faith, particularly his support for Israel.
Mamdani does not support Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state, arguing instead that Israel should exist as a state with equal rights for all. The 34-year-old state lawmaker called Israel’s devastating siege of Gaza a “genocide” following a Hamas-led offensive in southern Israel in 2023. In a recent White House meeting with President Donald Trump, Mamdani said that the Israeli government is committing genocide and that the US government is funding it.
“Look, quitting is a complex and emotional decision,” Tucker told CBS’ Tony Dokoupil. “But ideologically, there is no question that the mayor (elect) and I disagree on some very fundamental points.”
A spokesperson for Mamdani, who is Muslim, did not respond to a request for comment.
On November 5, Mr. Tucker signed a short letter of resignation addressed to Mayor Eric Adams. Mr. Tucker, who has served as FDNY Director since August 2024, will last on December 19th. The FDNY referred questions about Mr. Tucker’s replacement to City Hall.
A City Hall spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment.
Mr. Tucker’s resignation came days after Police Chief Jessica Tisch, who is also Jewish, said she would remain in her role. Mamdani has been a vocal critic of the NYPD, once calling for “#defundtheNYPD” but later apologizing. Mamdani has expressed support for Tisch, who is credited with helping reduce crime. Mr. Tisch comes from a Manhattan billionaire family and has expressed support for Israel.
An FDNY spokesperson did not respond to emailed questions about whether Tucker’s decision had anything to do with the department’s direct role in firefighting and emergency response. Thakkar told CBS that neither he nor anyone in the agency had been contacted by Mamdani.
“The mayor’s comments will make it difficult for me to continue in a senior leadership role in this administration,” Tucker said.
Manhattan synagogue protests Mamdani’s test
Mr. Tucker referenced the mayor-elect’s recent response to a pro-Palestinian protest outside a Manhattan synagogue on November 19th. Park East Synagogue hosted an event for an organization promoting the migration of North American Jews to Israel and the occupied West Bank. According to media reports, the chants included phrases such as “Death to the IDF” and “Globalize the Intifada,” references to the Israel Defense Forces.
Protesters reportedly blocked the entrance to the synagogue at one point. The protests were condemned by Republican and Democratic leaders and denounced as an attack on Jewish New Yorkers.
Nefesh B’Nefesh, an organization that promotes aliyah, or Jewish immigration to Israel, hosted the synagogue event. The group’s website lists settlements in the occupied West Bank as destinations within Israel. In a statement, the group said it condemned the “violent language and offensive behavior” that took place outside.
According to the New York Times, Mamdani encouraged this language in a statement, saying New Yorkers should be “free to enter houses of worship without intimidation,” but added that “sacred places should not be used to promote activities that violate international law.” Mamdani’s spokesperson was later quoted as saying that the mayor-elect was referring to the promotion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank, where the majority of Palestinians live, which is illegal under international law.
In New York and elsewhere, protesters have caused controversy by sometimes demonstrating outside synagogues that host events related to West Bank settlements, which Israel has occupied since 1967 and is part of the Palestinian state. Attacks against Palestinians by Jewish settlers have recently escalated in the West Bank.
According to the Times of Israel, during a Shabbat service on Saturday, Nov. 22, Tisch said he regretted not sending police to protect entry to the synagogue, especially amid “growing fear” within the Jewish community. Recently, the Justice Department’s Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Harmeet Dhillon said on social media that an investigation into the Manhattan protests is underway.
Mr. Mamdani has sought to reassure the many cautious Jewish New Yorkers of diverse denominations and backgrounds, including those who make up about one in 10 of the city’s residents and staunchly support Israel as a Jewish state.
Less than a third of Jewish voters supported Mamdani in the general election, according to CNN exit polls. As mayor, Mamdani pledged to increase security at synagogues and strengthen the Hate Crime Prevention Fund, including to address the rise in anti-Semitism.
Eduardo Cuevas is based in New York City. Contact us via email (emcuevas1@usatoday.com) or Signal (emcuevas.01).
