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Zohran Mamdani Scores a Major Victory As NYC Greenlights Rent Freezes

Dmitri Bolt
Dmitri Bolt  |  June 26, 2026 2:15 PM

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani just got his rent-freeze measure approved by the city government, a victory for the socialist mayor and a serious blow to basic economics, free markets, and New Yorkers who may now see housing quality and affordability deteriorate even further.

The city’s Rent Guidelines Board approved rent freezes on Thursday by a 7-1 vote for nearly 1 million rent-stabilized apartments, which account for roughly 40 percent of all apartments across the five boroughs. The rule is expected to take effect on Oct. 1.

“This is a historic victory for New York City tenants,” Mamdani said in a statement. “I’ll continue working to deliver a more affordable city by building and preserving affordable housing, lowering building operating costs like insurance and ensuring tenants know their rights.”

Although the Rent Guidelines Board is supposedly independent, the mayor appoints its members, making it independent in name only. Mamdani appointed six of the nine members in February, and on Thursday morning, a member of the board, Christina Smyth, resigned, arguing that the vote felt predetermined.

New Yorkers now get to watch as the rent freeze threatens to make housing in the city even less affordable, as non-rent-frozen housing becomes more expensive in an effort by some landlords to cut the rising costs of rent-stabilized apartments. 

This comes as Mamdani cemented his emerging status as a political kingmaker, with three DSA-backed, Mamdani-endorsed congressional candidates defeating establishment Democrats in primary races across the city. New York City, in other words, has become the beachhead for a socialist takeover of the Democratic Party and, more broadly, the United States.