A poll conducted ahead of the New York City mayoral election found that 9% of residents would “definitely” leave the city and another 25% would “consider” relocating if Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani proved victorious on Nov. 4.
It is yet to be seen whether NYC will ultimately hemorrhage millions of residents in the coming months. It appears, however, that Mamdani’s rise to power has already prompted departures at the New York Police Department.
‘How do you work for somebody who considers you racist and anti-queer and wants to defund the police?’
Citing sources familiar with the situation and Police Pension Fund data, the New York Post indicated that a surge of police officers quit in the weeks leading up to the mayoral election, when Mamdani was a clear favorite to win.
In October, the NYPD reportedly saw a 35% spike in police of all ranks leaving the force. Whereas 181 left the force in October 2024, this year 245 officers left during the same stretch.
Detectives Endowment Association president Scott Munro told the Post, “Morale is down because everyone is concerned about the policies Mamdani wants to put in place.”
“You have a person who is supposed to be running New York City that does not believe in law enforcement,” continued Munro. “What’s coming out of everyone’s mouth is, ‘We’re in trouble.'”
RELATED: Here’s what exit polls reveal about Tuesday’s electoral bloodbath
Photo by TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images
Mamdani, who takes office on Jan. 1, has made no secret in recent years of his antipathy toward the NYPD.
The mayor-elect suggested, for instance, in a June 28, 2020, tweet that the NYPD “is racist, anti-queer & a major threat to public safety” and stressed that it was necessary to “defund the police.”
“How do you work for somebody who considers you racist and anti-queer and wants to defund the police?” said one retired cop. “Things are hard enough already. If you’re eligible to leave, why would you want to stay in that situation?”
Mamdani now claims that he doesn’t want to defund the police; however, he has indicated that he’s not interested in hiring more police to address the NYPD’s near-record-low numbers and appears keen to replace police in certain circumstances with social workers.
On the campaign trail, Mamdani proposed the creation of an agency aimed at preventing “violence before it happens by taking a public health approach to safety.” The so-called Department of Community Safety would have a budget of over $1 billion — drawing $605 million from existing programs — and would appropriate some of the responsibilities of police, including responding to mental health calls and dealing with erratic homeless individuals.
Some individuals with actual experience dealing with the city’s mentally ill and homeless have suggested that Mamdani’s proposal is disaster waiting to happen.
A Bronx cop told the Post, “How’s that going to work when the person pulls out a gun or a knife?”
“You can’t do this without police — it’s impossible,” Richard Perkins, a behavioral nurse with 14 years’ experience told the Gothamist. “No one in their right mind would do this alone. You’re going to get hurt.”
Mamdani’s appointment of Elle Bisgaard-Church as his chief of staff signals he’s likely serious about the DCS. Bisgaard-Church, who serves as Mamdani’s campaign manager, was reportedly the proposed agency’s “chief architect.”
In addition to effectively replacing police with social workers on certain calls, Mamdani has ruffled feathers by committing to both closing Rikers Island prison and shifting the final say on police disciplinary actions from the NYPD commissioner to the anti-police Civilian Complaint Review Board.
‘It seems to me like there may be people from there looking for jobs.’
“Nobody wants to be a New York City cop,” a police union consultant told the Post. “It’s not worth the money, the stress, the danger, especially working for a mayor who wants to take the department apart.”
Blaze News has reached out for comment to the New York City Police Benevolent Association and the Sergeants Benevolent Association of the NYPD as well as to the mayor’s office.
Retired NYPD Chief of Department John Chell recently told Newsmax that about 4,000 police officers of every rank are eligible for retirement in January but suggested that “it remains to be seen” whether there will ultimately be a mass exodus.
In the meantime, law enforcement organizations in other jurisdictions are extending offers to disenchanted NYPD officers.
The Houston Police Officers’ Union, for instance, released a flyer earlier his month telling New York cops “disgusted with the election of Zohran Mamdani” that the Houston Police Department is hiring and offering “competitive pay with [a] 36.5% pay raise just approved over 5 years.”
The Franklin County Sheriff’s Office was one of the outfits in Florida that is similarly trying to recruit from the NYPD, reported WMBB-TV.
“With the changing of what’s going on in New York City with a new mayor and probably a different way of doing things for law enforcement up there, it seems to me like there may be people from there looking for jobs,” said Sheriff A.J. Smith. “And I have jobs. And I would love to have anybody from the NYPD or anywhere up that way that may be affected by the change to apply here.”
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is also seizing on the opportunity to recruit New York cops alienated by the incoming mayor.
ICE shared a recruitment poster to social media last month captioned, “NYPD OFFICERS: Work for a President and a Secretary who support and defend law enforcement — not defund or demonize it.”
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Police, New york, New york city, Mamdani, Nypd, Social workers, Defund the police, Crime, Leftism, Democrat, Exodus, Ice, Politics
