WASHINGTON: As record numbers of New Yorkers turn out for early voting, the city’s mayoral frontrunner, Zohran Mamdani, is facing escalating attacks from Republican lawmakers who have urged the Justice Department to review — and potentially revoke — his US citizenship.

In a letter laced with rhetoric, Representative Andy Ogles this week called on US Attorney General Pam Bondi to “denaturalise and deport” Mamdani, alleging that the 34-year-old Democrat failed to disclose his “advocacy for Palestinian human rights” during the naturalisation process — something Ogles claimed could be interpreted under US law as “support for terrorism.”

Ogles’s letter echoed earlier remarks by Representative Randy Fine, who has demanded a Justice Department review of all naturalisations in the past 30 years, “starting with Mamdani.”

Fine has accused the candidate of posing “a threat to the nation” and has linked him to what he calls “the enemy within — people who came here to destroy America.”

Speaking to reporters, Fine said: “If they’re not Americans, they can’t be in office.”

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organisation, has also sent a letter to the Attorney General urging the Department of Justice (DOJ) to swiftly and publicly reject Ogles’ “racist and Islamophobic demand” that the federal government pursue denaturalisation proceedings against New York Assembly member Zohran Mamdani.

CAIR emphasised that “targeting an American citizen for denaturalisation based on their political beliefs, religious faith, or ethnic background would violate the First and Fifth Amendments of the US Constitution.”

The denaturalisation move followed months of mounting Republican criticism of Mamdani, a New York State Assembly member and self-described democratic socialist who became a US citizen in 2018. He was born in Uganda to Indian parents and has become one of the most recognisable progressive voices in New York politics.

Meanwhile, a record 1.2 million people have already voted. More than 165,000 New Yorkers had voted by the second day of early polling, and nearly 80,000 ballots were cast citywide on the opening day alone. According to official figures, this represents a fivefold increase compared with the same stage in the 2021 mayoral race.

Political analysts, quoted in various US media outlets, noted that the surge could work in Mamdani’s favour, as his campaign depends heavily on younger, progressive voters who tend to cast ballots early.

Mamdani rejected the accusations outright in comments to The New York Post on Sunday, describing himself as “a proud democratic socialist” and saying it was “telling that Republicans in Washington are more concerned about deporting me than ending the ongoing government shutdown.”

He also dismissed the repeated labelling of him as a communist. “No matter how many times these Republican Congress members or the president of this country call me a communist, it doesn’t make it true,” he said.

In a separate post on X, formerly Twitter, Mamdani accused his opponents of weaponising his faith and immigration history. “They are trying to scare every immigrant who dares to speak up,” he wrote. “We won’t be intimidated.”

Immigration attorneys and constitutional scholars say the Republican claims have no legal standing. “Denatura­lisation is a serious and rare step reserved for proven fraud or concealment of material facts — not political speech or advocacy,” New York attorney Cyrus Mehta wrote.

He added that support for Palestinian rights or membership in the DSA cannot legally disqualify someone from citizenship. “Neither of those positions constitutes affiliation with a totalitarian organisation,” he said.

“Every time they attack him, more people show up,” said Meryem Kahloon, an attorney based in Kentucky. “People know what this is really about — it’s about silencing voices like ours.”

A Justice Department spokesperson declined to comment on whether the agency had received Ogles’s letter, citing a policy of not discussing ongoing or potential investigations.

The attack on Mamdani began just months after he won the Democratic primary, defeating former New York governor Andrew Cuomo in what analysts described as a political upset. His victory reflected the growing influence of progressive, immigrant, and youth blocs in city politics.

President Donald Trump, asked earlier this year about Mamdani’s promise to “stop masked ICE agents from deporting our neighbours,” replied: “Then we’ll have to arrest him.”

Published in Dawn, October 28th, 2025