Zohran Mamdani scores key union endorsement as his educational record faces scrutiny

Democrat nominee Zohran Mamdani secured his latest endorsement from the United Federation of Teachers (UFT) in his New York City mayoral campaign on Wednesday morning. 

The governing body for the 200,000-member union representing New York City's teachers and education professionals voted to endorse Mamdani Tuesday. Describing New York City's wealth disparity as a "crisis," UFT President Michael Mulgrew said Mamdani is the candidate to support students and usher the city forward. 

"Donald Trump would love nothing more than to continue to hack away at one of the beacons of light in our city, which is our education system," Mamdani said Wednesday. 

Earlier this year, President Donald Trump signed an executive order to significantly scale down the Department of Education, fulfilling a key 2024 campaign promise. New York Democrats, including Gov. Kathy Hochul, who has yet to endorse Mamdani, have railed against the shake-up. 

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"To have this endorsement a few months from the general election, it shows New Yorkers the choice that they will have in November: a choice between myself and the architect of Tier 6 in Andrew Cuomo [and] a choice between myself and a mayor that this union had to sue to actually put that money back into schools in Mayor Eric Adams."

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But not everyone was so convinced Wednesday, as the reactions to the education union's endorsement came flooding in. 

"Disgraceful, disgusting, but also completely unsurprising that the commies heading the @UFT would support their fellow comrade and his agenda. Maybe y’all should focus on rehiring the teachers you fired unjustly and represent the interests of your members? Just a thought?" Republican New York City Councilwoman Inna Vernikov said on X. 

Author and university law professor David E. Bernstein undermined UFT's efficacy, writing, "Notice how little the teachers' union agenda has to do with improving education or anything else that would directly benefit students."

And some New York City Jewish educators criticized the endorsement. Moshe Spern, president of the United Jewish Teachers, told The New York Post, "We understand that Mamdani’s campaign promises are attractive to the UFT, but many feel let down with this selection."

Along with the endorsement announcement, the Mamdani campaign is touting support from more than a dozen unions across the city, including the Hotel and Gaming Trades Council (HTC), SEIU 32BJ, New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA) and the New York City Central Labor Council (AFL-CIO). 

Mamdani has been under scrutiny for his radical policies since he secured the Democratic nomination last month. Since then, his personal education record has also attracted headlines. 

After it was reported that Mamdani identified as "Asian" and "Black/African American" in his application to Columbia University, his SAT scores were revealed to be below the median score for students admitted into the school, according to a new report. 

Independent journalist Christopher Rufo reported on Monday that, according to Mamdani’s full Columbia application, he scored 2140 out of 2400 on the SAT, which was below the median score of students admitted to the university in 2009.

Mamdani criticized his opponents, Mayor Eric Adams and former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, for focusing on politicians instead of on the people they serve. 

"I think 2140 is a fine SAT score, but I think that the Adams War room is very focused on every little thing that they can talk about. Ultimately, their focus is on old tweets [or] on anything but what we actually campaigned on [and] the promises I've made to New Yorkers over the course of this campaign," Mamdani told reporters Wednesday. 

"Those are the promises that I will be judged on, and they are promises to freeze the rent, to make buses fast and free, to deliver universal childcare. And what Eric Adams and others would seek to focus on are any one of a number of issues that have nothing to do with affordability," Mamdani added. 

Adams did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment. 

Fox News Digital's Andrew Mark Miller, Paul Steinhauser and Peter Pinedo contributed to this report.