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New York Post

Who is Rama Duwaji? Wife of NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani he met on Hinge

Zohran Mamdani might not be the only radical relocating to Gracie Mansion in the fall — his artist wife, whose multimedia career often includes pro-Palestinian works, will be by his side if the Democratic primary winner claims another victory in November. Mamdani's wife — 27-year-old Rama Duwaji — shared the stage with her 33-year-old socialist husband after his stunning victory Tuesday night, one of the rare appearances she's made on the campaign trail. She was largely unseen since Mamdani announced his candidacy in October, but was thrust into the spotlight in May after The Post reported on the couple's small but lavish Dubai engagement celebration. Advertisement Mamdani took a moment to honor his wife after his stunning victory over disgraced former Gov. Andrew Cuomo. 'I must thank my incredible wife,' he said to applause from the watching crowd. 'Rama, thank you,' he added, kissing her hand. 'Couldn't possibly be prouder,' Duwaji wrote on Instagram after the Queens assemblyman's historic win, which, if elected, would see him become the youngest Big Apple mayor since 1914. Advertisement 4 Rama Duwaji, 27, joined her 33-year-old husband Zohran Mamdani onstage after his victory in the primaries Tuesday AP So, who is the possible future first lady of the Big Apple? Brooklyn-based Syrian artist The bio on Duwaji's Instagram, where she boasts nearly 85,000 followers, indicates she's originally from Damascus, Syria, though a campaign spokeswoman told the New York Times Wednesday that the artist is 'ethnically Syrian and was born in Texas.' The Post has reached out to Mamdani's campaign for clarification. Advertisement Duwaji told YUNG that she spent most of the COVID-19 pandemic with her family in Dubai, The Post reported last month. She has been working as an animator and illustrator in Brooklyn for several years, after earning a Master of Fine Arts in Illustration at $29,000-a-semester School of Visual Arts. 'Using drawn portraiture and movement, Rama examines the nuances of sisterhood and communal experiences,' according to her website. 4 'I must thank my incredible wife,' Mamdani said to applause. 'Rama, thank you,' he added, kissing her hand. Getty Images Advertisement Her notable clients include the New Yorker, Washington Post, BBC and London's famed Tate Modern gallery, it added. Duwaji's work — largely pen-and-ink-style digital illustrations — centers on pro-Palestine, Arab and female identity themes, showing burka-clad women crushed under rubble or keffiyeh-clad protesters being pinned down by police. One extended animation — also posted by her husband's Instagram account — describes how New York charities send more than $60 million to 'fund Israeli war crimes.' 'By recognizing groups like these as charities, New York is subsidizing Israel's illegal settlement expansion and state violence against Palestinians,' the animation says. Others refer to Palestinians facing an 'ethnic cleansing' or show support for Mahmoud Khalil, the Columbia University protester arrested by the Trump administration for his part in widespread anti-Israel protests at the Ivy League school. Duwaji and Mamdani met on Hinge Mamdani and Duwaji met several years ago on the dating app Hinge, but little is known about the city's potential first couple beyond a bevy of lovey-dovey photos posted on Instagram. 'Rama isn't just my wife, she's an incredible artist who deserves to be known on her own terms,' Mamdani wrote on the platform when he shared photos from their civil ceremony at the City Clerk's office, his first major public mention of his wife. 4 Duwaji is an illustrator and animator who has been living in Brooklyn. She met Mamdani on Hinge several years ago. Laura Thompson/Shutterstock Advertisement 4 Duwaji and Mamdani were married this past winter at the City Clerk's office. Instagram/Rama Duwaji The ceremony came months after the two secretly held an engagement and Nikkah — an Islamic religious ceremony in which a couple signs a marriage contract — in Dubai, according to Instagram posts by florist LMF Dubai. The bash was held Dec. 22, 2024, on the rooftop of Vida Creek Harbour, which boasts breathtaking views of the Burj Khalifa, according to the post. Advertisement 'Before their civil ceremony in New York City, Zohran and his wife celebrated their engagement in Dubai last year—where her family lives—with a small, joyful ceremony surrounded by their loved ones,' the Mamdani campaign said in a statement. What's next for Mamdani's campaign Mamdani earned 43.41% of the vote in the ranked-choice ballot to beat out Cuomo, 67, who nabbed 36.42%, and conceded to Mamdani soon after polls closed Tuesday. That means Mamdani will take on incumbent Mayor Eric Adams — who is running as an independent — in November, along with Republican Curtis Sliwa. Mamdani, a Queens assemblyman born in Uganda to a professor father and a renowned movie-making mother, would be the first Muslim to serve as New York City mayor.