Summary

  • Donald Trump says he agrees "a lot more than I would have thought" with Zohran Mamdani after a "great meeting" at the White House

  • The US president congratulates the New York mayor-elect on his win earlier this month, as he says he thinks he'll do a "great job"

  • The two New Yorkers have been extremely critical of each other in the past, with Trump calling the self-described democratic socialist a "communist"

  • Today, however, he calls Mamdani's views a "little out there", adding that he could even "surprise some conservative people"

  • They also say commit to working together to address cost of living issues in New York City

  • Both Mamdani and Trump seem to be going to great lengths to avoid any spat inside the Oval Office, writes our White House reporter

Media caption,

'That's OK, you can say it' - Trump shrugs off Mamdani's 'fascist' comments

  1. Mamdani and Trump to address presspublished at 20:40 GMT

    Reporters have been brought into the Oval Office, where Donald Trump is seated at his desk, with Zohran Mamdani standing beside him.

    Stay with us as we'll bring you updates - you can also watch live at the top of this page.

  2. 'Turn the volume up': Mamdani's pledge to stand up to Trump pressurepublished at 20:36 GMT

    Zohran Mamdani in a dark stands at podium with a sign reading ‘A New Era for New York City’ at the front, two women flanking Mamdani behind himImage source, Getty Images

    We're waiting to learn more about Mamdani's meeting with Trump but one thing he's made clear before heading to the White House was that he remains focused on his aim of making New York more affordable despite his “many disagreements” with the US president.

    In a raucous election day victory speech, the New York mayor-elect had four words for the watching US president: “Turn the volume up."

    Mamdani then referenced Trump’s own relationship with the city he is now set to run, saying: “If anyone can show a nation betrayed by Donald Trump how to defeat him, it is the city that gave rise to him."

    The next day, Mamdani pledged to stand up to pressure from Trump’s administration, saying he’d tackle the "twin crises" of "an authoritarian administration and an affordability crisis".

    The incoming New York mayor also promised he would not mince his words around the president, but said he would leave a “door open” for conversations to discuss his priorities.

    “I’m not concerned about this meeting,” he said ahead of their meeting. “I view this meeting as an opportunity to make my case.”

  3. Unclear whether Trump or Mamdani will speak to the presspublished at 20:22 GMT

    As we've reported in the previous post, New York city mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani has arrived at the White House for his meeting with President Trump.

    It's still unclear whether there will be any press access to the meeting or whether either Mamdani or Trump will speak afterwards.

    We'll bring you updates as soon as we have them - stay with us.

  4. Zohran Mamdani arrives at the White Housepublished at 20:11 GMT
    Breaking

    Mamdani has arrived for his meeting with President Trump, the White House has confirmed to the BBC.

    "Too late guys! Y’all are too slow!" the White House's director of communications says on X.

    Accompanying Steven Cheung's post is a picture taken from a window inside the White House showing a section of the media grouped on the White House grounds.

  5. Large crowd waits for Mamdani's arrivalpublished at 20:02 GMT

    Bernd Debusmann Jr
    Reporting from the White House

    Dozens of reporters gathered outside the White HouseImage source, Bernd Debusmann Jr / BBC
    Image caption,

    A view from in front of the White House

    There are dozens of reporters outside waiting for Mamdani, as well as a small handful of staffers watching from the Eisenhower Executive Building next door.

    We still have not received word of whether the meeting will be open to press.

    A few minutes ago, there was a moment of panic for many journalists as someone said that he was arriving. Instead, it was Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.

    It is unclear if he is inside or not.

  6. What Trump and Mamdani have said about each otherpublished at 19:48 GMT

    Media caption,

    Watch: What Trump and Mamdani have said about each other

    Trump and Mamdani have had plenty to say about each other over the past few months.

    Trump on Mamdani

    • Trump has called Mamdani a "100% communist lunatic". Mamdani says he is not a communist and is a democratic socialist
    • During Mamdani's mayoral campaign, Trump said "everything comes through the White House" and threatened to pull federal funding for New York if Mamdani won
    • Earlier today, the president says he was "hitting him a little hard" during the campaign, but admitted Mamdani ran "a good race"

    Mamdani on Trump

    • During his campaign, Mamdani said Trump did not make America more affordable and was making things more expensive
    • Mamdani said he was willing to work with Trump to lower the cost of living
    • Mamdani has criticised the Trump administration's deployment of National Guard troops in US cities: “Once again, the Trump administration chooses authoritarian theatrics that create fear, not safety. It must stop.
  7. White House buzzing ahead of Mamdani meetingpublished at 19:40 GMT

    Bernd Debusmann Jr
    Reporting from the White House

    Interior of the White House briefing roomImage source, Bernd Debusmann Jr/BBC News

    It's extremely crowded at the White House, easily on par with what we see when foreign heads of state visit.

    There are dozens of cameras outside the West Wing of the Oval Office, and the White House briefing room is full of reporters using the seats as impromptu work spaces.

    Down in the basement - where the BBC is located - it's packed.

    We still don't know for certain whether the event will open up to today's White House press pool, but most journalists here are working under the expectation that we'll catch a glimpse of either Trump or Mamdani, or both.

    The two men have been extremely critical of each other in the past, and Trump has repeatedly floated the idea of withholding federal funds from New York City if he were to win the election.

    Earlier today, however, Trump sounded more conciliatory, telling Fox News Radio that he believes the two men will "get along fine" and that both are "looking for the same thing - we want to make New York strong".

    It remains to be seen whether this more amicable tone would continue in front of the world's cameras. On occasion, it hasn't, as South African president Cyril Ramaphosa and Ukrainian president Volodomyr Zelensky found out earlier this year.

  8. 'I think we will get along fine', Trump says ahead of meetingpublished at 19:32 GMT

    TrumpImage source, Reuters

    Trump appeared to lower the temperature ahead of his first meeting with Mamdani.

    In an interview on Friday, the president praised Mamdani's campaign and described it as "a good race". He says the mayor-elect was "nice" during their call and that he expects their meeting will be "quite civil".

    "He has got a different philosophy," Trump told Fox radio host Brian Kilmeade. "He's a little bit different... But I think we'll get along fine. We are looking for the same thing - we want to make New York strong and, you know, there's such a different philosophy".

  9. Watch: Mamdani ‘not concerned’ by Trump meetingpublished at 19:21 GMT

    Media caption,

    Watch: Zohran Mamdani on his upcoming meeting with President Trump

    Speaking on Thursday, New York’s incoming mayor told reporters that his meeting with Donald Trump would focus on public safety, affordability and economic security.

  10. Analysis

    Mamdani's swift risepublished at 19:18 GMT

    Anthony Zurcher
    North America correspondent

    Zohran Mamdani in a dark suit stands behind a podium bearing the sign "Zohran for New York City" as he speaks at an election night party. Behind him are several flags, including the US flag to his rightImage source, EPA

    Zohran Mamdani, the newly elected mayor of New York City, is notable in many ways. He will become city’s youngest mayor since 1892, its first Muslim mayor and its first mayor born in Africa.

    That alone makes his victory over former Governor Andrew Cuomo and Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa remarkable. But more than that, he represents the kind of politician that many in the party’s left has been seeking for years.

    He’s young and charismatic, with his generation’s natural comfort with social media. His ethnicity reflects the diversity of the Democratic Party’s base.

    He hasn’t shied away from a political fight and has proudly espoused left-wing causes – such as free childcare, expanded public transportation and government intervention in free market systems.

    He has shown a laser-like ability to focus on the kind of core economic issues that have been a priority for working-class voters who have drifted from the Democratic Party recently but he hasn’t disavowed the left’s cultural principles.

    By running against and defeating Cuomo – a former New York governor who was himself the son of a governor - he vanquished the entrenched Democratic establishment viewed by many on the left as woefully out of touch with their party and their nation.

    But critics have warned that such a candidate is unelectable in broad swathes of America - and Republicans have gleefully held the self-avowed democratic socialist up as the far-left face of the Democratic Party.

  11. Mamdani to meet Trump after months of tense exchangespublished at 19:11 GMT

    Zohran Mamdani speaks into several mics during an outdoor press conference at City Hall Park. He's wearing a buttoned-up dark coatImage source, Reuters

    New York's mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani and President Donald Trump will meet later today after months of trading barbs ahead of - and after - the city's recent election.

    Mamdani told reporters the meeting would focus on public safety, affordability and economic security.

    "I intend to make it clear to President Trump that I will work with him on any agenda that benefits New Yorkers," Mamdani has said. "If an agenda hurts New Yorkers, I will also be the first to say something."

    Trump has cast Mamdani as a dangerous choice to be his hometown mayor and described him as a “communist”, which the mayor-elect denies, self-describing as a democratic socialist.

    The president is likely to speak in opposition to some of Mamdani’s plans including raises taxes for wealthy residents to pay for social programmes like free child care.

    We'll keep our eyes on the White House and bring you the latest updates from their meeting on this page - stick with us.

    They are scheduled to sit down at 15:00 ET (20:00 GMT).