US election results 2020: Filmmaker Mira Nair's son Zohran Mamdani wins New York state assembly

NEW DELHI: Filmmaker Mira Nair's son

Zohran Mamdani

on Wednesday made history after he became on of the first South Asians to win a seat in

the New York State Assembly

.


29-year-old Mamdani, a Democratic Socialist and a rapper, ran unopposed to represent New York's 36th Assembly District in Astoria.

While confirming the news of his victory, Mamdani tweeted, "It's official: we won. I'm going to Albany to fight to tax the rich, heal the sick, house the poor & build a socialist New York. But I can't do it alone. To win socialism, we'll need a mass movement of the multiracial working class as well. So let's build one. Join @nycDSA."



Who is Zohran Kwame Mamdani?

Zohran Kwame Mamdani is an Indian-Ugandan-American politician, housing counselor, and a rapper. Mamdani, who was born in Uganda, describes himself as an "Indian-Ugandan New Yorker."

Mamdani was born in Kampala, Uganda to Indian filmmaker Mira Nair and Ugandan academic Mahmood Mamdani.

He grew up in

New York City

after his family moved there when Mamdani was seven years old. Zohran Mamdani went to Bronx Science for high school, graduated from Bowdoin College, and now works as a housing counselor.

As a hip-hop artist, Zohran Mamdani, under the stage name of Mr Cardamom, has released numerous hip-hop songs, most notably "Nani" in the year 2019.

On his website, Zohran said, "He helps immigrant families facing eviction stay in the homes they worked their whole lives to earn."

About his decision to run for the state assembly, Mamdani said, "I am running for State Assembly because it’s time to guarantee housing to all New Yorkers as a right, regardless of ability to pay. It’s time to desegregate our schools, fully eliminate cash bail, ban solitary confinement, fund and fix the MTA, end workplace discrimination, and fight for social, racial, economic, and environmental justice for the many, not the few."

In an interview with the Times of India in August this year, talking about his campaign and socialism, Zohran said, "As democratic socialists, we believe that the state should provide whatever is necessary for its people to live a dignified life. Typically, dignity is thought of through the provision of the “big 3”: housing, healthcare, and education. Yet this pandemic has made clear how much more is necessary — we all need internet, childcare, public transit, and more. These should not be up for debate because we see what happens when we let the market be the sole determinant of the distribution of dignity."

Talking about his rap video with Madhur Jaffrey, and is he would stop being Mr Cardamom, he had said, "I was once Young Cardamom, then Mr Cardamom, why not Assemblyman Cardamom?"