New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani’s week from hell has seen him lose his grip on the leftist base that helped him rise to power. 

Mamdani, an avowed Democratic Socialist, saw his rapid ascent from little–known political activist to mayor linked to progressive and pro–Palestinian sectors of the left.

He was accused of being a ‘traitor’ by pro–Palestine protesters on Wednesday as he held a candle at a Union Square vigil marking the third anniversary of Hamas’ October 7, 2023, attack on Israel.

One day later, Mamdani was confronted by protesters as he spoke about ICE’s shooting of 28–year–old Oscar Bergal, an immigrant from the Dominican Republic, in the Marble Hill neighborhood of northern Manhattan.

‘Mamdani is complicit,’ the protesters chanted, making it difficult to hear him.

The mayor called for ICE to be abolished during his remarks on Thursday. However, some of his supporters have started questioning his decision to repeatedly meet with President Donald Trump, most recently at Gracie Mansion in September.

Mamdani insisted to The New York Times on Friday that he met with President Trump ‘to ensure that we’re using every opportunity we have to deliver for this city.’

However, Mamdani was unable to sway Trump to release Bergal despite several phone calls to the President and DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin, the outlet reported.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani was booed at an October 7 candlelight vigil in Union Square on Wednesday night

He has also faced criticism for repeatedly meeting with President Donald Trump, most recently at Gracie Mansion last month

‘Mamdani is complicit,’ protesters chanted at him on Thursday, as he addressed ICE’s shooting of Dominican immigrant Oscar Bergal alongside NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch

Signs that Mamdani’s grip on the left could be slipping started when the mayor appeared at the October 7 vigil.

Protesters chanted ‘traitor’ and ‘sellout’ at Mamdani, effectively accusing him of not living up to some of the political stances he became known for.

Mamdani stood stone–faced as the leftist demonstrators heckled him.

After leaving the memorial without addressing the crowds, Mamdani dined at Hinds Hall, the Upper West Side’s only Palestinian restaurant.

A masked activist who had been waiting for the mayor outside the restaurant ran up to his car and shouted, ‘Stop being a f***ing traitor.’

Another activist called Mamdani a ‘boot licker.’

Mamdani appeared to acknowledge the protests one day later as he spoke to reporters.

‘I am the mayor of New York City and this is what I signed up for,’ he said, according to the Associated Press.

David Carlucci, a Democratic strategist and former New York state senator, said the incidents outlined some of the struggles Mamdani was now facing as mayor.

‘The transition from activist to executive is one of the toughest challenges in politics,’ Carlucci told the Wall Street Journal.

The co–chair of the New York City chapter of Democratic Socialists of America, Gustavo Gordillo, said the group still backed Mamdani but was ready to hold him accountable.

‘This week was indicative of some restiveness and a desire among the base to see concrete policy for Palestinian liberation and quicker progress on some policing promises,’ Gordillo told the outlet.

The October 7 memorial was interrupted as pro–Palestinian demonstrators confronted Mamdani

Mamdani was later seen having dinner at Hinds Hall, the Upper West Side’s only Palestinian restaurant 

Mamdani was met with more jeers Thursday night during a press conference in which he addressed the shooting of Bergal, who authorities have said is undocumented with a felony record and gang affiliations.

The mayor said he spoke with Trump and Mullin, the DHS Secretary, to demand that ICE agents be removed from the city but his efforts were unsuccessful.

‘We know, and I have said this directly, whether to the president or to the public, ICE undermines public safety,’ Mamdani said. ‘It makes us less safe.’

The mayor stood next to NYPD commissioner Jessica Tisch, who has also faced pushback from the left.

The NYPD was recently criticized after pushing anti–ICE protesters to the ground on Thursday night following Bergal’s shooting.

Mamdani ally and Democratic congressional candidate Darializa Avila Chevalier was among those demonstrators.

Chevalier, who is a Democratic Socialists of America member like Mamdani, called for Tisch to step down in the wake of what happened.

‘The NYPD spent more time protecting a militia that just shot someone than protecting New Yorkers,’ Chevalier said on X.

However, Mamdani was adamant that Tisch would not be leaving her position.

‘Jessica Tisch is the police commissioner and there are no plans to change that,’ Mamdani told the Times on Friday. 

He added that he and Tisch would review of ‘all of the events of the last 24 hours.’

Democratic congressional candidate Darializa Avila Chevalier, a Mamdani ally, called on Tisch to ‘step down’ after anti–ICE protesters were pushed to the ground by NYPD officers

Mamdani said Friday that there were ‘no plans’ to remove Tisch as NYPD commissioner

Chevalier and other leftists have specifically taken issue with the NYPD’s Strategic Response Group (SRG), a rapid deployment force that focuses on counterterrorism and citywide protests.

Mamdani promised to disband the SRG when he was running for mayor, saying the group had ‘brutalized countless New Yorkers exercising their first amendment rights.’

On Thursday morning, Mamdani said he was ‘as committed as I was at the very beginning in the importance of disbanding the SRG.’ 

Bergal was driving with his 5–year–old son when he was shot by ICE at around 4pm near West 225th Street and Marble Hill Avenue.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which oversees ICE, said Bergal had refused orders to exit his car and then ‘accelerated and smashed into two government vehicles’ before being shot by officers. 

Bergal’s lawyer, Harold Solis, said he was still in a Brooklyn federal jail with a bullet in his body. 

The NYPD was not involved in Bergal’s shooting, according to the department. 

Mamdani previously acknowledged on X that he had called Trump about the ‘unconscionable and incredibly serious situation.’

‘When we speak I will demand that he ends all ICE enforcement actions in our city,’ Mamdani posted Thursday. 

The Daily Mail has reached out to Mamdani’s office for comment.