Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic front-runner for mayor of New York City, and Letitia James, the New York attorney general, presented themselves as a united front against President Trump at a major campaign rally on Monday, assailing his agenda and arguing that he was seeking political retribution.
The rally in Manhattan was billed as Mr. Mamdani’s closing argument in the mayoral race, and it captured his improbable journey from unknown state lawmaker to Democratic nominee — buoyed by a grass-roots army of volunteers, and, eventually, by unions and more mainstream Democratic politicians like Ms. James.
“My friends,” he concluded, “our time is now.”
Mr. Mamdani nonetheless chose to share the spotlight with Ms. James, who was indicted last week on federal charges of bank fraud and making a false statement after warring with Mr. Trump. Her support of Mr. Mamdani — and the platform she commanded on Monday night — took on extra significance.
In her first public appearance since the indictment, Ms. James spoke defiantly against the charges, raising her fist in the air before vowing to fight them.
“You come for me, you’ve got to come for all of us, all of us, every single one of us,” she said, her voice rising. “We’re all in this together.”
Ms. James, the state’s first Black attorney general, said that she had “learned to stand on the shoulders of my ancestors” and had seen how they had overcome generations of injustice and cruelty.
“Despite being seared with scars, they survived,” she said.
Ms. James spoke warmly of Mr. Mamdani, calling him her “little brother” and “one of the boldest voices in the history of New York City politics.” She likened herself to Mr. Mamdani, calling him a leader capable of withstanding groundless attacks.
“He, like me, knows what it’s like to be attacked, to be called names, to be threatened, to be harassed,” she said.
Mr. Mamdani used his speech, delivered 22 days before Election Day, to criticize Mr. Trump’s policies and vowed to fight back as mayor.
“We are in a period of political darkness,” Mr. Mamdani said. “Donald Trump and his ICE agents are snatching our immigrant neighbors from our city right before our eyes. His authoritarian administration is waging a scorched-earth campaign of retribution against any who dared oppose him.”
Both leaders pledged to protect vulnerable New Yorkers at a critical moment for the city and for themselves: Ms. James is facing the president’s wrath, and Mr. Mamdani may become the first Muslim mayor of New York City, with his brand of democratic socialist politics and his faith already making him a target of Mr. Trump and Republicans.
The rally, which was held at the ornate United Palace Theater in the predominantly Dominican American neighborhood of Washington Heights, focused on Mr. Mamdani’s populist plans, including universal child care and free buses. It also highlighted his diverse coalition and his biography as an immigrant who, as a state lawmaker, has worked on issues like debt relief for taxi drivers.
This was his fourth major campaign rally, and it was intended to excite his supporters and beseech them not to become complacent. Earlier rallies featured Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, two prominent progressive leaders.
Mr. Mamdani has a double-digit lead over former Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo; the general election is on Nov. 4. At the rally, Mr. Mamdani seemed to treat Mr. Cuomo as less of a threat than Mr. Trump, though some of the earlier speakers seemed to take special glee in their criticism of the former governor.
Several speakers, including Natasha Cloud, a guard for the New York Liberty basketball team, criticized the federal immigration raids. Her praise of Mr. Mamdani’s support of Palestinian rights and his criticism of the Israeli government resulted in a sustained, impromptu chant of “Free, free Palestine.”
Mr. Cuomo, who supports Israel and has sought to make the war in the Middle East a central issue in the race, posted on social media on Monday morning that the release of the hostages was “a moral moment, a reminder of our shared humanity and the sacred value of every life.”
Mr. Cuomo criticized Mr. Mamdani for taking hours to respond to the return of Israel’s hostages on Monday.
Mr. Mamdani posted in the afternoon that the “scenes of Israelis and Palestinians are profoundly moving,” mentioning both the hostages and the families returning home in Gaza.
Democrats in New York have rushed to Ms. James’s defense since she was indicted on Thursday in the Eastern District of Virginia. The indictment was secured by Mr. Trump’s handpicked prosecutor, Lindsey Halligan.
Mr. Mamdani has been among Ms. James’s most fervent supporters, and she has embraced him enthusiastically, even as some Democrats in New York have viewed him with skepticism.
At a rally the weekend before the June 24 primary, Ms. James compared Mr. Mamdani’s campaign to Barack Obama’s first presidential run. She is popular in the Democratic stronghold of Brooklyn and is seen as a link between the moderate and progressive wings of the state’s Democratic Party.
Mr. Cuomo has risen in the polls since Mayor Eric Adams exited the race, and Mr. Cuomo has focused on attacking Mr. Mamdani as too far to the left. Mr. Mamdani has criticized Mr. Cuomo as being beholden to Mr. Trump and to wealthy donors such as Bill Ackman, the billionaire financier.
Mr. Mamdani challenged Mr. Ackman by name at the rally, agreeing with Mr. Ackman that his campaign was an existential threat.
“We are an existential threat to billionaires who think they can buy our democracy,” Mr. Mamdani said to loud cheers.
Many of Mr. Mamdani’s supporters are younger and from wealthier neighborhoods. But the crowd at the rally was diverse, reflecting his outreach to immigrant communities and new voters.
Tulashi Chitrakar, a first-time voter who lives in Woodside in Queens and who is from Nepal, said he left his job working in information technology early to attend the rally. He wore a “Freeze the Rent” button and said that working class residents were being pushed out of the city.
“It should not be a city of millionaires and billionaires,” he said. “It should be for all.”
Emma G. Fitzsimmons is the City Hall bureau chief for The Times, covering Mayor Eric Adams and his administration.
Jeffery C. Mays is a Times reporter covering politics with a focus on New York City Hall.
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