Jessica Tisch apologizes for brother’s remarks about Zohran Mamdani

New York City Mayor-elect Zahran Mamdani said Thursday that New York Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch personally apologized to his team after her brother called him an “enemy” of the Jewish people during a high-profile charity dinner in Manhattan on Wednesday night.

Speaking at a Cocoa Chat community meeting, Mamdani confirmed that the apology had been received and that he intended to rule for all New Yorkers.

“The commissioner has apologized to my team for these remarks, and I look forward to becoming mayor for all New Yorkers, including Jewish New Yorkers,” Mamdani said.

He stressed that the incident would not interfere with his working relationship with Tisch, whom he chose to retain as police commissioner despite political differences.

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“My focus in my conversations with Commissioner Tisch is providing public safety and doing so alongside justice for New Yorkers across the five boroughs,” he said. “It was the apology that I conveyed to the team. I appreciated that, and my focus has returned to delivering it.”

In a statement to Fox News Digital, NYPD spokesman Brad Weekes shared the commissioner’s message:

“I understand the fear in the Jewish community. My sincere belief is that the mayor-elect will fulfill the commitment he made to be mayor for all New Yorkers, including the Jewish community.”

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NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch will continue to lead the department. (Jenna Moon/Reuters)

The apology came after Tisch’s brother, Benjamin Tisch, the billionaire CEO of Loews Corporation, used his remarks at the Met Council’s annual gala to call Mamdani an “enemy” of the Jewish people, according to two attendees who spoke with the New York Daily News.

Witnesses from the party – hosted at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Manhattan – described the moment as jarring, especially since Commissioner Tisch recently agreed to remain at the helm of the New York Police Department under the incoming Mamdani administration.

The room’s reaction was stunned silence: “It was like, ‘Wow, he’s actually going to go there,'” one attendee told the Daily News. Benjamin Tisch has not yet commented publicly on the incident.

Mayor-elect Zahran Mamdani speaks to members of the media at Flushing Meadows Corona Park in the borough of Queens, New York, on Wednesday, November 5, 2025. (Adam Gray/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Mamdani, a democratic socialist and outspoken critic of Israel, has repeatedly rejected claims that his views on Israel are anti-Semitic.

Members of the broader Tisch family have donated more than $1 million to super PACs that oppose Mamdani during the 2025 mayoral race and support former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, according to the New York Daily News. Commissioner Tisch did not donate.

Last month, Mamdani told the New York Daily News: “We both will not shy away from the fact that we disagree on some issues…but I also believe that these differences are not only reconcilable, but a sign of a healthy partnership to come.”

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This escalation comes just weeks before Mamdani’s inauguration on January 1.

Mayor-elect Mamdani and a representative Benjamin Tisch did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.