The incoming New York City mayoral administration is focusing directly on affordability, with the 400-member transition committees representing numerous nonprofits aiming to implement a rent freeze, upzoning near transit lines, and speeding up residential construction.

“New Yorkers have placed a great deal of hope and expectation in this new course that they have elected us to chart. It is a hope that City Hall can deliver results that make material, tangible changes in the lives of working people across these five boroughs,” Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani said at a press conference on Monday.

Broken up into 17 committees such as Housing, Community Organizing, Youth & Education, and Social Services, among others, its members were selected by Mamdani’s team based on experience and shared goals, with leaders in labor, nonprofits, and academia, with most of the names prominent in progressive circles.

Some of the names also reflect continuity and experience, similar to Mamdani’s hiring of Dean Fuleihan as a deputy mayor, based on his decades-long experience evaluating budgets for the State Assembly, governors, and former Mayor Bill de Blasio. Among them are leaders from the Association for a Better New York, Real Estate Board of New York, and Partnership for New York, representing the city’s larger businesses and developers.

The committees include groups representing neighborhoods, ethnicities, and religions, but almost entirely absent are voices from the city’s sizable Orthodox Jewish communities. There are five individuals who identify as rabbis, with longtime FDNY chaplain Joe Potasnik as the only one with a s’michah recognized by mainstream Orthodox organizations. Prior to his retirement, he served at an egalitarian synagogue in Brooklyn Heights. Alongside his pastoral work, Potasnik was recognized for his experience in interfaith and interdenominational outreach.

Furthermore, as individuals on the committee represent African, Bengali, Caribbean, Chinese, Latino, and Arab communities, among others, not one Orthodox Jewish organization is represented. Somehow, Mamdani’s visit to a COJO breakfast in Flatbush and the Satmar community for Sukkos did not translate into either of these communities having a voice in the mayoral transition. Positive coverage by Jacob Kornbluh, an Orthodox reporter at The Forward, on “How Mamdani Built Bridges,” also did not result in deeper engagement with Orthodox news publications.

Having earned the distrust of nearly two-thirds of the city’s Jewish voters with his characterization of Israel as an “apartheid state” engaging in “genocide,” Mamdani appears to have no desire to mend relations with the mainstream Jewish community. At last week’s anti-Israel rally outside a Nefesh B’Nefesh event at the Park East Synagogue, protesters shouted death threats at participants. Mamdani only condemned them for their choice of words while reaffirming that “these sacred spaces should not be used to promote activities in violation of international law.”

Regardless of election results, all New York City Mayors, Comptrollers, Public Advocates, and Council Speakers in recent memory had Orthodox individuals on their staffs. We may not have voted for them, but we have a stake in this city and deserve a seat at the table. We contribute to this city and are affected by policies set forth at City Hall.

When Mamdani speaks of affordability, it is a topic we know all too well, as we balance the high cost of housing, education, care for the elderly, costs running businesses, and purchasing necessities. When we read about upzoning, it is mostly about studios to two-bedroom units that are inadequate for large and multi-generational households common among Orthodox Jews.

Concerning education, although most Orthodox families do not send their children to public schools, they rely on public services relating to special needs and transportation that tie them to the Department of Education, along with many members of the community who work in public schools as administrators and teachers.

Mamdani’s Emergency Response Committee includes City Harvest but not Masbia; American Red Cross, but no Hatzalah, Shomrim, or Shmira chapters. The Vulcan Society, representing Black firefighters, made the list, but not Ner Tamid, which represents Jewish members of the FDNY.

The incoming administration described the appointments as a “once-in-a-generation” opportunity to rebuild public trust and deliver for working-class New Yorkers, with 70,000 applicants applying for the 400 positions. Perhaps there weren’t any Orthodox applicants in this massive pool, which is highly doubtful. Having met Orthodox staffers who work for progressive politicians, I understand that being branded as a token, or worse as a kapo, is not a good look; but when an elected official needs to get in touch with the Orthodox community, it is helpful to have a staffer who understands us. Speaking from personal experience, staffers may not agree with the politician’s views, but they can deliver on constituent services for which everyone pays.

In his retention of Jessica Tisch as police commissioner, Mamdani underscored their differences, and likewise in his meeting with President Trump, in which they spoke about affordability and building more housing. Having risen to power by social media, Mamdani can echo his followers who are happy to shut out voices that opposed his candidacy, or he can rise to the occasion by hiring a truly diverse cabinet that welcomes input from communities of all political and social stripes.

 By Sergey Kadinsky