He’s Zo-ing back on his word. Many of Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s lofty campaign promises have already bit the dust 100 days in, as he makes a U-turn or scales them back almost beyond recognition. His improbable path from democratic socialist also-ran to victory in 2025’s election came in no small part from the sweeping, voter-pleasing pledges.
Mamdani’s early viral promise to open city-run grocery stores has all but disappeared from the conversation during his first 100 days in office. The pitch that candidate Mamdani made repeated was that five grocery stores — one in each borough — could sell food to hard-working New Yorkers at wholesale prices if the city covered rent and property taxes. But no such city-owned grocery stores have opened. Instead, Mamdani has just proposed $70 million in new funding for the city’s Economic Development Corporation to scout potential locations for and build the five stores.
