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The socialist mayor is planning for another type of movement.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani and the city’s first lady Rama Duwaji officially moved into Gracie Mansion on Monday — and were flush with ideas about the 227-year-old mayoral residence’s bathrooms.
“One thing that we will change is we will be installing a few bidets into Gracie Mansion,” Mamdani said outside the Upper East Side landmark.
“That’s an aspirational hope. We’ll see if we can actually get it done.”
Other than sprucing up the plumbing, the unapologetic progressive Mamdani promised not to let the stately surroundings change him.
Hizzoner said he’ll continue to take the subway, ride the bus and get on city bikes to commute from his new digs in Carl Schurz Park, at East End Avenue and 88th Street in Yorkville.
“While there is no security deposit being put down today, Rama and I intend to strive each day to be the best possible custodians of this beautiful home, because we know that we are only its temporary occupants,” he said.
“That doesn’t just mean a new coat of paint. It also means being intentional about how this historic property represents the civic fabric of the city, being thoughtful about how we steward the space and opening it up to New Yorkers who are not often the ones who get to visit such a place as this.”
Mamdani stayed quiet until after November’s election about whether he’d actually move to the mayoral mansion and leave behind his rent-stabilized, $2,300 apartment in Astoria, Queens.
Duwaji, his artist wife, visibly deflated when asked about becoming an Upper East Sider by a reporter from The Cut, according to a recent cover story from the glossy magazine.
But the couple ultimately decided to move to Gracie Mansion for security reasons.
Mamdani seemed in good spirits during the move, joking about his predecessor Mayor Eric Adams’ belief that Gracie Mansion was haunted.
“I haven’t yet met the ghost or heard from the ghost,” he quipped.
Mamdani also hinted that he’ll soon adopt a cat.
“I am currently getting my allergy shots so that I can fight off my allergy to cats,” he said. “That’s the hope.”
English (US)