Mayor Zohran Mamdani could soon be in for his first big showdown with the City Council, as he grapples with whether to veto or sign legislation calling for protest buffer zones around houses of worship and schools.
A bill providing for security perimeters around houses of worship passed a council vote Thursday by a veto-proof majority, 44 to 5. But a similar bill covering schools and universities fell short, passing 30 to 19, and could be killed by a mayoral veto.
Though watered down significantly from their original form, the bills have drawn opposition from allies of the mayor, including the Democratic Socialists of America, pro-Palestine activists, and civil liberties groups. Mamdani faces a choice between alienating his base by allowing the bills to become law, or stirring up a firestorm from critics who constantly accuse him of being soft on antisemitism by issuing his first veto.
The mayor and his aides are voicing skepticism of the legislation, though Mamdani hasn’t said whether he plans to veto it.
"As the mayor has made clear, he does not view protest as a security concern. And he does not think that there is any kind of contradiction between prayer and protest in New York City," Ramzi Kassem, the chief counsel to the mayor, said Thursday night in an appearance on NY1.
Mamdani spokesperson Dora Pekec told Hell Gate the mayor is taking opposition to the bills seriously. "The Mayor is keenly aware of the serious concerns regarding these bills' limiting of New Yorkers' constitutional rights, and he will keep these concerns in mind for any bills that land on his desk," she said. "He wants to ensure both the right to prayer and the right to protest are protected here in New York City."