Mamdani seemingly begins his ‘defund the police’ reign by nixing officer increase

The previously agreed upon officer increase for the New York Police Department has been scrapped by Mayor Zohran Mamdani (D) in the city’s final budget proposal amid pressure from his socialist base.

The $125.8 billion budget was originally slated to include $70 million to fund the addition of 580 NYPD officers, as outlined in Mamdani’s executive budget proposal released in May.

‘We are calling on Mayor Mamdani to reverse this proposed expansion of the NYPD.’

Mamdani has pivoted in the weeks since.

“I’ve been talking to all agency heads about ways to find savings, and [Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch] and I were able to identify ways to keep the NYPD head count at the originally authorized 35,000 while also meeting all of our crime-fighting needs and implementing the new programs that were announced earlier this year,” Mamdani said during a press conference Tuesday.

The night before the final budget vote, City Council Speaker Julie Menin (D) said she received a call from the mayor informing her of his agreement with Tisch to cut the officer increase from the budget.

“I disagree with that decision. … I do believe we need those officers,” Menin said, citing concerns over increasing rape, felony assault, and subway crime numbers.

“We are going to fight for it now,” she added.

Menin did note that the NYPD budget increased by $300 million for the fiscal year.

The NYC Democratic Socialists of America, of which Mamdani is a member and with whom he holds close political ties, has been avidly calling on the mayor to follow through on his campaign promise to keep the NYPD head count flat.

“We are calling on Mayor Mamdani to reverse this proposed expansion of the NYPD and invest the money in community safety programs instead,” NYC-DSA said on June 12.

The proposed head count increase “runs counter to the values of the socialist and working-class movement that elected him,” the group continued, adding, “When police serve as default first responders, New Yorkers are placed in harm’s way.”

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NYPD graduates salute family and friends at their Recruit Graduation Ceremony at Madison Square Garden on March 9, 2026. Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

In a statement to Fox News Digital, the NYPD said, “It is no secret that the city is facing serious financial challenges, and the mayor has asked every agency head to find efficiencies. … For now, the department is able to police effectively with the budgeted head count we have, driving crime down month after month. That head count and our hiring plan gives us the flexibility we need to maintain that balance over the next fiscal year.”

NYPD funding had been at the forefront throughout last year’s mayoral election as Mamdani’s controversial X posts regarding police funding resurfaced, including one where he called the force “wicked” and “corrupt” and advocated for its defunding and dismantling.

In another post, he said, “We don’t need an investigation to know that the NYPD is racist, anti-queer & a major threat to public safety. … What we need is to #DefundTheNYPD.”

Council member Tiffany Cabán, a democratic socialist and chair of the council’s Progressive Caucus, backed the mayor’s decision.

“I am proud to have worked closely with the mayor and public safety advocates to ensure there was no increase to the NYPD’s headcount in this budget. Every dollar we spend on policing and incarceration means money we can’t spend on housing, mental health care, substance use treatment, and economic stability.”

The Fiscal Year 2027 budget was officially adopted by the City Council on Tuesday and signed into law the following day by Mamdani, making it the largest budget in city history.

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