Lina Khan to Co-Chair NYC Mayor-Elect Zohran Mamdani’s Transition Team

Following Zohran Mamdani’s victory in the New York City mayoral election on Tuesday night, his campaign announced that former FTC chair Lina Khan will serve as one of four co-chairs of his transition team.

Khan, who has long been an ally of Mamdani’s, previously praised him in a New York Times op-ed for his work with small business owners. Her appointment to an official role in his transition sends a clear signal to Wall Street and Silicon Valley, where several high-profile figures have already expressed concerns about Mamdani’s policies.

A self-described Democratic socialist, Mamdani has drawn criticism from tech elites and billionaires alike for proposing a 2% tax on incomes above $1 million and for publicly challenging corporate power.

“A Clear Mandate for Change”

“What we saw last night was New Yorkers not just electing a new mayor, but clearly rejecting a politics where outsized corporate power and money too often end up dictating our politics,” Khan said in a speech on Wednesday.

She added that Mamdani’s victory represents “a clear mandate for change — one where New Yorkers can get ahead, and where all workers and small businesses can thrive, not just get by.”

Considerable Money Opposition Fails to Stop Mamdani

High-profile investors and executives, including Airbnb co-founder Joe Gebbia, hedge fund billionaire Bill Ackman, and former NYC mayor Mike Bloomberg, reportedly spent millions backing former New York governor Andrew Cuomo, who finished second in the race.

Meanwhile, DoorDash contributed $1 million to a pro-Cuomo super PAC. Mamdani’s campaign platform called for stronger regulation of delivery apps and enhanced protections for gig workers — policies that directly clashed with the interests of companies like DoorDash and Uber.

Khan’s History of Challenging Big Tech

Like Mamdani, Lina Khan has faced fierce opposition from influential corporate leaders. As the former chair of the Federal Trade Commission, Khan gained recognition for challenging tech monopolies and opposing mergers involving Amazon, Meta, Google, and Microsoft.

Though some of her efforts to block mergers were unsuccessful, many in Silicon Valley still blamed her for slowing down the flow of acquisitions and tightening regulatory scrutiny on the tech sector.

Even prominent Biden supporters, such as LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman and investor Vinod Khosla, have publicly criticised Khan’s antitrust approach. In an interview with TechCrunch last year, Khosla described Khan as “not a rational human being.”

Currently a professor at Columbia Law School, Khan is referred to as “the nation’s leading antimonopoly champion” on Mamdani’s official transition website.

Meet the Other Transition Co-Chairs

Alongside Khan, the other three co-chairs on Mamdani’s transition team are:

• Grace Bonilla, president and CEO of the non-profit United Way of New York City
• Maria Torres-Springer, former first deputy mayor of New York City
• Melanie Hartzog, president and CEO of The New York Foundling

The four co-chairs will be led by Elana Leopold, a senior adviser to Mamdani’s campaign and former official in Bill de Blasio’s mayoral administration.

“Lina is focused on getting set up to assist the transition on economic policy and personnel,” Douglas Farrar, a spokesperson for Khan, told TechCrunch.

Updated 11/5/25, 2:20 PM ET with comment from Douglas Farrar.