Mamdani walks back plan to increase NYPD headcount following DSA pressure

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles!
New York City’s new budget does not include a potential police department headcount boost authorization that had been on the table, reports indicate.
Big Apple Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a self-described Democratic socialist, said during a Tuesday press conference, “So, I’ve been talking to all agency heads about ways to find savings, and Commissioner Tisch and I were able to identify ways to keep the NYPD headcount at the originally authorized 35,000 while also meeting all of our crime-fighting needs and implementing the new programs that were announced earlier this year.”
Fox News Digital reached out to the mayor’s office on Wednesday.
TRUMP WARNS ‘GODLESS COMMUNISTS’ WILL TURN CITIES INTO SLUMS AS DEMS FAIL TO FIGHT SOCIALIST SURGE
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, center, and Julie Menin, speaker of the New York City Council, center right, during an announcement of a handshake agreement on the 2027 budget in the rotunda of City Hall in New York on Tuesday, June 30, 2026. (Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The NYPD provided Fox News Digital with the following statement on Wednesday: “It is no secret that the city is facing serious financial challenges, and the mayor has asked every agency head to find efficiencies. Commissioner Tisch has led three city agencies over the course of her career, and few public servants have a stronger record of finding efficiencies, modernizing operations, and delivering results for New Yorkers even under the most difficult budget conditions. For now, the department is able to police effectively with the budgeted headcount we have, driving crime down month after month. That headcount and our hiring plan gives us the flexibility we need to maintain that balance over the next fiscal year.”
The New York City Democratic Socialists of America had spoken out against the prospect of an increase earlier this month.
Part of a statement posted on the left-wing group’s X profile, which appeared to also have been joined by several other groups, declared, “We are calling on Mayor Mamdani to reverse this proposed expansion of the NYPD and invest the money in community safety programs instead.”
MAN DEAD, ANOTHER CRITICAL AFTER DOUBLE STABBING AT BROOKLYN PARK AS POLICE DETAIN PERSON OF INTEREST: NYPD

An NYPD car is decorated in pride colors during the 2026 New York City Pride March on June 28, 2026, in New York City. (Manoli Figetakis/Getty Images)
The NYC-DSA reposted City Council member Tiffany Cabán’s statement hailing the news about the budget on Tuesday.
“I am proud too have worked closely with the Mayor and public safety advocates to ensure there was no increase to the NYPD’s headcount in this budget,” Cabán said. “Every dollar we spend on policing and incarceration means money we can’t spend on housing, mental health care, substance use treatment, and economic stability: the proven policies that actually keep our communities healthy and safe.”
MAMDANI RIPPED FOR CLAIMING VICTORY OVER CAPITALISM AFTER NYC’S MULTI-BILLION DOLLAR TAXPAYER FUNDED BAILOUT

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Julie Menin, speaker of the New York City Council, right, during an announcement of a handshake agreement on the 2027 budget in the rotunda of City Hall in New York, on Tuesday, June 30, 2026. (Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE FOX NEWS APP
“This budget is an important check on the failed policy of broken windows policing and will allow us to build a public safety infrastructure rooted in care, not punishment and incarceration. And we will keep building on it,” she added.
Fox News’ Matthew Donnell contributed to this report.