Role at the time: 9/11 widower and petition organizer
Condemned
Statement summary
Galante said Mamdani's presence would disrespect families because of people the mayor supports.
“having Mamdani there would show a disrespect to our family members”
Open source (opens in a new tab)Petition from 9/11 families asks Mayor Mamdani not to attend remembrance ceremonyInterview with petition organizer Giovanni Galante
Why we used this label
He organized the exclusion petition and explicitly objected to attendance.
Rudy Giuliani, George Pataki, and some September 11 victims’ relatives opposed Zohran Mamdani attending the 2026 memorial, citing his rhetoric and associations. Mamdani said he would honor victims; other elected officials and a family group said excluding the sitting mayor would politicize the commemoration.
