US Media Alleges Pakistani Political Party Helped Zohran Mamdani Win NYC Mayorship

A recent report by the New York Post has alleged that a Pakistani political party indirectly helped Zohran Mamdani, New York City’s newly elected mayor, secure victory — marking the city’s first-ever Muslim and South Asian leader.

According to the publication, Pakistan’s Haqooq-e-Khalq Party (HKP) — a left-wing political organization — was linked to activist networks and advocacy groups that supported Mamdani’s campaign efforts through community outreach among South Asian voters.

The report highlights the involvement of Desis Rising Up and Moving (DRUM), a New York–based immigrant rights organization, and its political wing DRUM Beats, which spearheaded grassroots voter mobilization efforts in boroughs with significant Pakistani, Bangladeshi, and Indo-Caribbean populations.

DRUM reportedly mobilized over 150,000 South Asian and Indo-Caribbean voters, a record-breaking turnout that analysts described as “unprecedented in New York City politics.”

While there is no direct evidence of financial or material support from HKP, the report alleges that the party’s affiliated activists and sympathizers in the United States played an informal but influential role in community organization and political messaging.

The claims have sparked heated debate across political and diaspora circles, with some praising the increased engagement of South Asian communities in American politics, while others expressed concerns about foreign political influence.

Mamdani’s campaign team has not issued an official response to the allegations. However, supporters dismissed the claims as an attempt to undermine a historic milestone for Muslim and South Asian representation in U.S. politics.

Zohran Mamdani, born in Kampala, Uganda, to an Indian mother and Ugandan father of South Asian descent, built his political profile as a community organizer and New York State Assembly member before running for mayor.

The New York Post report also noted that many of Mamdani’s campaign priorities — including housing rights, workers’ protections, and immigration reform — align ideologically with movements supported by progressive South Asian political circles, including those with roots in Pakistan.

Political analysts say that the growing influence of South Asian voters — particularly from Pakistani and Bangladeshi backgrounds — has become a decisive force in New York elections, reflecting broader demographic and cultural shifts in U.S. urban politics.

The investigation is ongoing, and neither HKP nor Mamdani’s campaign has been officially accused of wrongdoing.