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Zohran Mamdani Administration Official Resigns Over Past Cbs News

Bonisiwe Shabane
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zohran mamdani administration official resigns over past cbs news

Updated on: December 19, 2025 / 11:17 AM EST / CBS New York Editor's note 12/19 11:17 a.m.: Mayor-elect Mamdani addressed the matter Friday at a news conference. Below is our original report from Thursday. Just one day after Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani announced Catherine Almonte Da Costa as Director of Appointments in his new administration, she resigned. The ADL of New York and New Jersey posted screengrabs of some of what it said was Da Costa's old social media posts. The posts are from more than a decade ago, the ADL said, and "echo classic antisemitic tropes and otherwise demean Jewish people."

"I spoke with the mayor-elect this afternoon, apologized, and expressed my deep regret for my past statements. These statements are not indicative of who I am. As the mother of Jewish children, I feel a profound sense of sadness and remorse at the harm these words have caused. As this has become a distraction from the work at hand, I have offered my resignation," Da Costa said. A top official in Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani’s incoming administration resigned abruptly Thursday after a series of anti-Jewish tweets were uncovered, just one day after her appointment was announced. Cat Da Costa, who would have served as Mamdani’s head of appointments in the mayor’s office, resigned hours after the social media posts were unearthed.

She would have been tasked with screening top hires for his administration. “I spoke with the Mayor-elect this afternoon, apologized, and expressed my deep regret for my past statements,” Da Costa said in a statement. In tweets from 2011 and 2012, per screenshots shared by the Anti-Defamation League, Da Costa, who’s now 33, complained about “money hungry Jews” and wrote that “Far Rockaway train is the Jew train.” Da Costa, who is married to a Jewish man, apologized for the hateful missives. An appointee tapped to lead New York Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani's recruitment efforts resigned Thursday after antisemitic social media posts resurfaced. Catherine Almonte Da Costa resigned a day after Mamdani named her director of appointments, with responsibilities to strategize recruitment in his administration.

"I spoke with the Mayor-elect this afternoon, apologized, and expressed my deep regret for my past statements. These statements are not indicative of who I am," Da Costa said in a statement through Mamdani’s transition team. "As the mother of Jewish children, I feel a profound sense of sadness and remorse at the harm these words have caused. As this has become a distraction from the work at hand, I have offered my resignation," she added. In remarks after Mamdani announced her appointment Wednesday, Da Costa had described “building a government that is both mission-driven and deeply capable, a government staffed by diverse leaders with the skill and the experience... New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani explains appointment of convicted armed robber Mysonne Linen to transition team.

Zohran Mamdani’s newly named director of appointments abruptly resigned Thursday after resurfaced social media posts showed she made antisemitic remarks, according to reports. Catherine Almonte Da Costa, tapped to serve in the incoming New York City mayoral administration, stepped down after the Anti-Defamation League of New York/New Jersey raised concerns about her past online activity. The posts, reportedly made between 2011 and 2012 on a now-deleted X account, included references to "money hungry Jews" and "rich Jewish peeps" and called a Far Rockaway train "the Jew train." "Her social media footprint includes posts from more than a decade ago that echo classic antisemitic tropes and otherwise demean Jewish people," the ADL wrote on X. One day after being hired by Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, Catherine Almonte Da Costa submitted her resignation after antisemitic statements in old Twitter posts dating back to 2011 surfaced Thursday. Mamdani transition sources tell NBC New York that he and his transition were unaware of the posts when they appointed Da Costa Wednesday.

When Mamdani put Da Costa in charge of hiring for the city, she pledged to recruit diverse talent. "They have to reflect the rich diversity of race faith ethnicity that defines this City," she said at the time. But today, 33-year-old Da Costa was apologizing for antisemitic posts dating back to when she was 18 years old. The posts were first found by the Anti-Defamation League, and then more problematic posts were uncovered by Timmy Facciola in a story on Substack. Soon after, Da Costa took down her Twitter account. NEW YORK CITY (WABC) -- Catherine Almonte Da Costa resigned after criticism of antisemitic posts on her social media when she was young.

"This is not indicative of who I am," she said. Da Costa is married to a Jewish man and she is the mother of two Jewish children. Mamdani, before and during the election strongly apologized for some of the statements he made when he was young. In a press conference Friday, Mamdani told reporters that New Yorkers have a right to expect better and apologized, claiming he did not adequately vet her. Zohran Mamdani’s prospective Director of Appointments, Catherine Almonte Da Costa, resigned in disgrace on Thursday, after several antisemitic social media posts resurfaced. Meet Catherine Almonte Da Costa, Zohran Mamdani’s pick for Director of Appointments in his new administration:

– “Jew train”– “money hungry Jews”– “rich Jewish peeps” After her old posts resurfaced, she thankfully resigned this afternoon and says she is a mother to Jewish… pic.twitter.com/pNL1C9I2vH — StopAntisemitism (@StopAntisemites) December 18, 2025 An official appointed by incoming New York mayor Zohran Mamdani resigned Thursday after past antisemitic posts on social media emerged. New York, New York - An official appointed by incoming New York mayor Zohran Mamdani to a senior role in his transition team resigned one day later on Thursday after past antisemitic posts on... The Muslim mayor-elect faced repeated, unfounded accusations of antisemitism during the mayoral campaign over his strident support for the Palestinian people, and conservative figures have vowed to closely scrutinize his administration when he takes...

Catherine Almonte Da Costa, Mamdani's "head of appointments," stepped down after antisemitic statements in old Twitter posts from 2011 surfaced, NBC News reported. The posts were uncovered by The Judge Street Journal newsletter. She had appeared alongside Mamdani at a press event on Wednesday following her appointment. With under two weeks to go before he’s sworn in, New York City mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani has not announced many hires for his administration. One of the few that he has announced was forced to almost immediately resign Thursday after her past antisemitic tweets came to light. Catherine Almonte Da Costa, whom Mamdani named his director of appointments just on Wednesday, in 2011 tweeted about “money-hungry Jews” and other similar comments, in posts first reported by The Judge Street Journal, a...

In a statement, Da Costa said, “I spoke with the Mayor-elect this afternoon, apologized, and expressed my deep regret for my past statements. These statements are not indicative of who I am. As the mother of Jewish children, I feel a profound sense of sadness and remorse at the harm these words have caused. As this has become a distraction from the work at hand, I have offered my resignation.” Mamdani’s transition also provided a statement from the mayor-elect: “Catherine expressed her deep remorse over her past statements and tendered her resignation, and I accepted.” Several New York political insiders told CNN that they questioned the incoming administration’s vetting process, given that she was picked despite tweets that were revealed so quickly after her announced hire.

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