As New York City’s next mayor prepares to take office, a look at how SVA alumni and faculty have documented his rise—and the growing profile of his wife, artist and SVA alumnus Rama Duwaji.
On January 1, 2026, Zohran Mamdani will be sworn in as New York City’s latest mayor, capping one of the area’s most talked-about political campaigns in recent memory. Over the past year, Mamdani’s rise was documented in a variety of media; several high-profile examples involved work by SVA alumni and faculty. And the incoming mayor has an even closer connection to the College: artist Rama Duwaji, Mamdani’s wife and the city’s imminent first lady, is a recent graduate of SVA’s MFA Illustration as Visual Essay program. Read all about it in this edition of The Five.
1. The New Yorker’s post-election day cover was created by artist and BFA Illustration faculty member Edel Rodriguez, whose work depicts a cheerful Mamdani riding the M train with fellow commuters—a diverse group of New Yorkers. Of the cover, Rodriguez said, “Mamdani spent much of his campaign out and about in the city—visiting bodegas, riding with taxi-drivers, asking questions, dancing, and laughing. He showed everyone he came across that he is one of them.”
2. Mamdani is the subject of a new children’s book, Zohran Walks New York, written and illustrated by Millie von Platen (MFA 2021 Illustration as Visual Essay). Von Platen’s book has Mamdani visiting such iconic locations as Citi Field and Coney Island, and was inspired in part by the author’s own continuing surprise and delight in her adopted hometown. In an interview about the project on NY1’s Mornings on 1, she said, “I wanted to make sure it was a love letter to New York City.”
New York City Mayor-Elect Zohran Mamdani on the subway during his 2025 mayoral campaign, photographed by Tim Schutsky (BFA 2021 Photography and Video) for Interview.
New York City Mayor-Elect Zohran Mamdani on the subway during his 2025 mayoral campaign, photographed by Tim Schutsky (BFA 2021 Photography and Video) for Interview.
3. The cover of Time’s September 8 issue features a striking closeup photo of Mamdani casually adjusting his tie. Dina Litovsky (MFA 2010 Photography, Video, and Related Media)—known for her editorial and documentary work and portraits of such noted subjects as comedian Bill Burr and Ringo Starr—took the cover photograph, as well as several “day-in-the-life” images of the candidate for the article itself.
4. Earlier in the year, another SVA alumnus, Tim Schutsky (BFA 2021 Photography and Video), photographed Mamdani for a spring Interview feature that ran two months ahead of the race’s Democratic Party primary. Schutsky’s portrait showed a smiling candidate riding the subway and wearing a Nehru jacket, and accompanied a Q&A with a wide-ranging array of New Yorkers about his plans for the city.
Artist Rama Duwaji (MFA 2024 Illustration as Visual Essay) in front of her SVA thesis project, “Sahtain!” Via The New York Times.
Artist Rama Duwaji (MFA 2024 Illustration as Visual Essay) in front of her SVA thesis project, “Sahtain!” Via The New York Times.
5. Rising artist and illustrator Rama Duwaji (MFA 2024 Illustration as Visual Essay), whose work has appeared in publications like New York and The New Yorker, also happens to be New York City’s incoming first lady, as Mamdani’s wife. Her work and personal style have already been the subject of considerable media coverage, including an October feature in the New York Times, which highlighted Duwaji’s SVA thesis project and her illustrations inspired by her own Syrian roots.