Mamdani echoes AOC’s ‘Woke 1 was crazy’ remark, says: ‘Sometimes, what you believe can change’

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani addressed the recent political discourse surrounding the phrase “Woke 1 was crazy” on Wednesday, emphasizing that personal beliefs are capable of evolving over time. The mayor offered his perspective during a groundbreaking event for the long-stalled Tremont Avenue busway in the Bronx, The Hill reported.

By aligning himself with the sentiment expressed by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and New York City council member Chi Ossé, Mamdani highlighted the importance of political growth. In a clip posted to social media by Newsday, Mamdani said, “And sometimes, what you believe can change and develop, it can grow, and I know that there are some for whom they still believe that.”

Mamdani maintained that candidates running for office have a fundamental responsibility to articulate exactly what they believe at any given moment. This shift in perspective has become a notable topic of conversation within the Democratic Party.

The phrase itself gained significant traction after Ocasio-Cortez brought it up recently

When questioned about the past positions held by former Wisconsin gubernatorial candidate Francesca Hong, Ocasio-Cortez paraphrased Ossé to explain how political rhetoric has shifted since the pandemic. Ocasio-Cortez said, “Well, you know, I think that during this time and … especially during COVID, there was a huge opening of the Overton window.”

AOC further explained that the economic environment during lockdowns created a unique period where people were willing to entertain a wide variety of policy proposals. According to Ocasio-Cortez, these discussions were “quite fruitful” but noted that “during lockdown, of course, rhetoric in that time is not rhetoric that we would use today.”

Mamdani used this moment to clarify his own stance on public safety and policing in New York City. He stated, “I’ve made very clear that I do not believe in defunding the police, that I will not be defunding the police.” He believes that effective public safety requires a collaborative approach, working with the New York Police Department “alongside many other partners.”

To support his current approach to safety, the mayor cited specific data from the NYPD. He noted that the department has reported “the fewest murders on record in New York City and the fewest shooting incidents on record in New York City” throughout the first seven months of 2026. For Mamdani, these statistics serve as a primary metric for evaluating the success of his administration’s public safety strategies. He concluded by saying, “And that, to me, is how we measure a lot of our public safety.”

The broader conversation around these shifting ideologies comes on the heels of Francesca Hong’s recent primary defeat. Hong, who shares a democratic socialist background with Ocasio-Cortez, Ossé, and Mamdani, had previously faced scrutiny for past statements regarding the abolition of prisons and the defunding of the police. She also made headlines for comments about canceling Thanksgiving, a holiday she described to CNN as “incredibly painful for many people in our communities.”

Following her loss to Milwaukee County executive David Crowley on Tuesday, the result stood out as a rare high-profile defeat for the progressive wing of the party. While Hong received support from figures like Rep. Ro Khanna, other prominent progressives such as Sen. Bernie Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez did not back her candidacy in the race.