‘You are even better-looking in person’: Trump and NYC’s socialist mayor have been doing something surprising since November

President Trump and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a democratic socialist, have been texting each other regularly since November. The two couldn’t be more different politically, but they’ve kept up an ongoing conversation that surprises many people.

According to Axios, the communication between them has been much more frequent than most people knew. Their relationship started during Mamdani’s visit to the Oval Office last November and has continued since then, though it recently hit some trouble over foreign policy issues.

You won’t find two politicians more opposite on the political spectrum. Before they met, Trump warned New Yorkers that electing Mamdani would destroy the city and called him a “communist.” Mamdani had called Trump a fascist. They started from completely opposite corners.

This unlikely friendship serves clear purposes for both politicians

Their first meeting in the Oval Office went surprisingly well. Sources say they exchanged phone numbers that day and have stayed in touch since. Trump complimented Mamdani right away, saying, “Wow, you are even better-looking in person than you are on TV.” Mamdani won Trump over by talking about local New York neighborhoods and mentioning a pharmacy Trump’s father used to visit.

For Mamdani, keeping a good relationship with the president makes practical sense. He needs to stop Trump from taking action against New York City, like cutting federal funding or sending National Guard troops, which Trump has threatened to do before. Trump has also made aggressive threats toward other territories, showing he’s willing to pursue bold foreign policy moves.

For Trump, the relationship lets him share the spotlight with the newly elected mayor. He also seems to like focusing on affordability issues, an area where he sometimes polls poorly. The two have talked about building affordable housing in the city, and Mamdani sent condolences after an attack on a National Guardsman in Washington, D.C.

The relationship hit a rough spot recently. This month, Mamdani called Trump to complain about U.S. strikes on Venezuela and the capture of Nicolás Maduro. Trump said he was “surprised” by how quickly Mamdani criticized him.

Trump talked about their relationship in the past tense, saying he did have a good relationship with Mamdani, but “he hit me sooner than I thought.” A top administration official was reportedly shocked by the mayor’s call and thought it was out of line.

The Trump administration has faced controversy over ICE enforcement actions in recent weeks as well. Mamdani downplayed the disagreement, saying they’ve always been “honest and direct with each other about places of disagreement.” Spokespeople for both sides won’t comment on how often they text or what they talk about day-to-day.