Zohran Mamdani’s wife Rama Duwaji breaks silence after making history with new first lady role
Zohran Mamdani's wife, Rama Duwaji, has broken her silence after being set to become the First Lady of New York City.
Back in November, Mamdani claimed victory by becoming the newly elected mayor of New York.
Mamdani, a democratic socialist, made history with his win, which made him the Big Apple's first Muslim mayor, the first of South Asian heritage, and the first born in Africa.
"Let the words we've spoken together, the dreams we've dreamt together, become the agenda we deliver together," Mamdani said in his victory speech. "New York, this power, it's yours. This city belongs to you. Thank you."
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Mamdani's wife, Duwaji, will also made history when she becomes New York's first Gen Z first lady in January.
Duwaji is a 28-year-old Syrian-American illustrator and animator, and has recently given her first interview since her husband's triumph.
Speaking about the moment she found out she would likely become first lady, Duwaji told The Cut: “I felt like I was walking through a fog.
“My friend came in from D.C. that day, and she got to experience that moment of seeing me — my brain — literally develop.
"I was like, Okay, I’m locking in."
Duwaji has refused all press interviews up until now, and didn't frequently appear on the campaign circuit with Mandani.
Speaking about how she feels about becoming first lady, she added: “It is surreal to hear. I think there are different ways to be first lady, especially in New York.
"When I first heard it, it felt so formal and like — not that I didn’t feel deserving of it, but it felt like, Me …? Now I embrace it a bit more and just say, ‘There are different ways to do it.’
“At the end of the day, I’m not a politician. I’m here to be a support system for Z and to use the role in the best way that I can as an artist.”
Duwaji's popularity has been soaring recently, with the internet calling her the 'chicest woman alive' while others have been asking their hairdresser for 'the Rama'.
Over on social media and one person wrote: "I genuinely wanna be as cool as rama duwaji."
While another said of the interview: "I can’t get over how cool those photos of rama duwaji are like what a spread."
And a third added: "Zohran Mamdani is so cool, but his wife Rama Duwaji, wow."
Duwaji earned a Master of Fine Arts in Illustration from the School of Visual Arts in New York, with her work having been featured by The New Yorker, The Washington Post, BBC, Apple, Spotify, VICE, and the Tate Modern in London.
Lucy Devine