On Sunday, Zohran Mamdani announced that he and his wife are going on a trip to Uganda, a trip that his spokesperson Jeffrey Lerner said in a statement was for “celebrating his marriage to Rama with their family and close friends.” While the telegraphic statement from Mamdani’s office relays the facts of his whereabouts for the near future, the Democratic nominee for mayor also announced the news with his trademark style on social media. “I’m in Uganda to visit family and friends,” Mamdani said in a post on X. “But depending on your perspective, don’t worry or I’m sorry: I’ll be back by the end of the month.”
The statement was accompanied by a video in which Mamdani noted that the trip conveniently meets the request of thousands of X users who have told the candidate in various ways that he should go back to Africa. He also offered the New York Post a series of potential headlines, “inshallah on the front page,” that could work for the coverage of his trip, including: “M.I.A. Mamdani in Africa?”; “Uganda Miss Me”; and “He’s Kampala-Etely Crazy.”
Good morning! I’m in Uganda to visit family and friends.
But depending on your perspective, don’t worry or I’m sorry: I’ll be back by the end of the month.
See you soon, NYC. pic.twitter.com/fIOf5NcZqy
— Zohran Kwame Mamdani (@ZohranKMamdani) July 20, 2025
On the same weekend as Mamdani’s announcement that he was leaving town, Cuomo said that he would do the same on a permanent basis if the Democratic nominee wins the mayoral race in November. Speaking at a fundraising breakfast in the Hamptons organized by billionaire John Catsimatidis on Saturday, the former governor told guests: “It’s all or nothing. We either win or even I will move to Florida. God forbid!”
The New York Post reports that Cuomo’s campaign later insisted that the remark was a joke. Cuomo is running on an independent ballot line after losing the June Democratic party primary for mayor to Mamdani, who won with the most votes in the history of the contest. Incumbent Mayor Eric Adams is also running on an independent ballot line after skipping the Democratic primary. Despite Mamdani’s primary victory in June, major figures within his party from New York—most notably Governor Kathy Hochul, House Speaker Hakeem Jeffries, and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer—have yet to endorse him.
