Zohran Mamdani ID’d himself as Asian and African American on Columbia application: report

Democratic socialist New York City mayoral frontrunner Zohran Mamdani, a Muslim immigrant, identified as both Asian and African American on his Columbia University application, a report claims.

The 33-year-old checked both “Asian” and “Black or African American” on his application to the Ivy League university — which was ultimately rejected — when he was a high school senior in 2009, the New York Times reported Thursday.

Mamdani, born in Uganda, told the outlet he doesn’t identify as either race but rather “an American who was born in Africa.”

“Most college applications don’t have a box for Indian-Ugandans, so I checked multiple boxes trying to capture the fullness of my background,” the Queens lawmaker said, adding that he specified “Ugandan” in a section of the application that allowed for more detailed personal information.

“Even though these boxes are constraining, I wanted my college application to reflect who I was.”

Mamdani, who clinched the Democratic mayoral nomination last week, told the outlet he selected the two races because of the limited options available on the college application — not to gain an edge in the admissions process. 

Columbia, like many top schools, factored race into admissions back then — a practice the Supreme Court has since struck down. 

The outlet obtained the controversial application after a seasoned “hacktivist” reportedly stole sensitive data from more than two million Columbia University students, applicants and employees in a targeted cyberattack last week. 

The lone hacker behind the massive breach later claimed responsibility in an anonymous message to Bloomberg News, admitting to stealing 2.5 million applications spanning decades to investigate whether the Manhattan university was still using affirmative action in admissions.

A university official told The Post Wednesday that Columbia’s admissions processes are compliant with the high court’s ruling.

Community members came out in force to slam Mamdani, who highlighted his Muslim and South Asian ancestry throughout his campaign, as a fraud. 

“It’s disgraceful to exploit this country’s legacy of slavery that oppressed African slaves,” Matthew Schweber, a Columbia University Jewish Alumni Association member, told The Post. 

“Zohran Mamdani’s exploitation of this category further exemplifies the fraudulence of his candidacy and the canard and pretense to speak on behalf of the oppressed. He is a child of privilege and two extraordinarily wealthy parents.”

Gerard Kassar, chairman of the state Conservative Party, accused Mamdani of exploiting affirmative action to try to gain college admission.  

“Mamdani has got a lot of explaining to do. This is part of the fraud he has perpetrated on New Yorkers throughout the primary campaign,” the Brooklyn resident fumed. 

“His focus was to get admitted to Columbia on affirmative action. It just didn’t work out. He was trying to get into a school by lying about his racial background. Race is a scientific specification, not the country you’re from,” Kassar said, adding that Mamdani, whose father was a Columbia professor, knew exactly what he was doing. 

His father, Mahmood Mamdani, is a professor of anthropology, political science and African Studies at the Ivy League, while his mother, Mira Nair, is an Oscar-nominated filmmaker.

“Being from Uganda doesn’t make you black. You can’t assume it makes you black,” Kassar charged.

The Post has reached out to Mamdani’s campaign.

The avowed socialist, a virtually unknown Queens assemblyman when he launched his campaign last year, skyrocketed to political stardom running on a platform including free buses and child care and taxing the ultra-wealthy and businesses to pay for it. 

Despite his shocking win over disgraced former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo — the early frontrunner in the crowded race — Mamdani has drawn criticism and sparked outrage over comments about Israel, including repeatedly refusing to condemn the phrase “globalize the intifada” as the conflict in Gaza drags on. 

His stunning victory garnered national attention, sparking talk of a new left-wing political movement in the Big Apple and beyond — and prompting President Trump to call for his arrest and deportation if he interferes with federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations if elected mayor.

Mamdani will face off against incumbent Mayor Eric Adams, who is seeking reelection as an Independent on the EndAntiSemitism and Safe&Affordable ballot lines.

Hizzoner demanded that Columbia release and investigate Mamdani’s application records for identifying himself as African American, when he did not become a US citizen until 2018, despite living in US since he was a boy.

“It’s now clear that Zohran Mamdani misrepresented his racial identity to gain admission to Columbia University, and at the time, he wasn’t even a U.S. citizen,” Adams’ campaign spokesperson Todd Shapiro said in a statement, adding that, “We need answers. Because the people of New York deserve to know whether the man asking for their vote built his career on a possibly fraudulent foundation.”

The Brooklyn native incumbent called the leading mayoral candidate’s actions “an insult to every student who got into college the right way.”

“The African American identity is not a checkbox of convenience,” Adams said in the statement. “It’s a history, a struggle, and a lived experience. For someone to exploit that for personal gain is deeply offensive.”

Cuomo will also appear on the ballot, though he’s still considering whether to run a full campaign. 

A new poll released Thursday showed Mamdani is the frontrunner to win the general election in November. 

The American Pulse survey showed Mamdani leading with 35% support for the general election, followed by Cuomo at 29%, Republican Curtis Silwa at 16%, Adams at 14%, and Independent candidate Jim Walden at 1%. 

“Mamdani has an early lead and a clear message, but deeper scrutiny may erode enthusiasm among general election voters,” said American Pulse pollster Dustin Olson.

“It’s possible some voters already have buyer’s remorse. When they hear about government-run grocery stores or Mamdani’s continued refusals to denounce ‘Globalize the Intifada,’ which many folks — including me — consider to be an antisemitic slogan, support softens.”