Mayor Mamdani Votes Early at the Met and Urges New Yorkers to Follow
New York City Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani has used one of the city's best-known museums to make his case to voters. In a video posted on social media, he says he cast his own ballot at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, known as the Met, on the first day of early voting. He says it took five minutes.
The video, reported by ARTnews, shows Mamdani walking through the Met's refurbished Rockefeller Wing. That gallery holds art from Africa, Oceania and the Americas. "Only in New York City can you vote in places like [the Metropolitan Museum of Art]," he says in the clip.
The Met is both an early voting site and an Election Day voting site. Other city museums are also polling places, including the American Museum of Natural History, the Museum of the Moving Image in Astoria and the Brooklyn Museum.
Early voting runs from Saturday, October 24, to Sunday, November 1, according to the city's voting guide. Election Day is Tuesday, November 3. In the video, Mamdani also says voters do not need to bring identification to cast a ballot.
He added a message about federal agents. Mamdani says ICE, the US immigration enforcement agency, and other armed federal agents cannot be at voting sites without a signed warrant, a legal order approved by a judge.
Mamdani was sworn in as mayor on January 1, 2026. Before that he represented New York State Assembly District 36, which covers Astoria, Ditmars-Steinway and Astoria Heights.
Arts funding has also been part of his time in office. According to ARTnews, the 2027 city budget gives the Department of Cultural Affairs US$323.8 million, the most the department has received in its history. Mamdani has also created the Cultural Stability Fund, which sets aside US$10 million over three years to help arts and culture nonprofits in the city stay steady. He has announced that individual artist grants will double to US$10,000.
For visitors and staff at the Met, the video is a reminder that the building can serve a second purpose for a few days each year. Voting there means the galleries stay open to the public while residents cast their ballots nearby. The window for early voting closes on Sunday, November 1, and Election Day follows on November 3.
