Bowdoin College made a long-awaited statement about one of its alumni achieving massive political success Tuesday night.
Many in the college community weren’t happy.
“Zohran Mamdani ’14 has been elected the 111th mayor of New York City. Bowdoin has a long tradition of graduates who have pursued careers in public service, including mayors, governors, legislators, ambassadors, and judges,” the statement read in its entirety.
Response was almost universally critical. In comments, alumni noted that the post did not include any congratulations for the 34-year-old Mamdani, who will be the first Muslim mayor of New York. The post also did not include a photo of Mamdani, but rather used a stock image of New York City with the college’s logo edited onto a bus stop shelter.
“The post about the Bowdoin invitational golf tournament was more enthusiastic than this,” said one of more than 600 comments, nearly all critiques from alumni or current students.
“This post feels like whispering under your breath,” read another.
Morgan Rielly, a Democratic state representative from Westbrook and 2018 Bowdoin graduate, didn’t overlap with Mamdani in college but has followed his campaign in New York with excitement. He called the college’s silence disappointing and the Instagram post disrespectful.
“To have an alum who is now going to be America’s mayor is an amazing achievement,” Rielly said Wednesday morning. “The college doesn’t have to endorse someone, but at the very least have a photo, and acknowledge that he had a historic achievement.”
Mamdani, a democratic socialist and state assemblyman, rose from obscurity to defeat Andrew Cuomo in the Democratic primary and then again in the general election, where Cuomo ran as an independent. Mamdani’s campaign successfully motivated young voters and volunteers while focusing on issues of affordability. More than 2 million people voted Tuesday, the highest turnout the city has seen in more than 50 years.
College officials did not comment throughout Mamdani’s campaign, saying their policies forbid weighing in on active candidates.
Bowdoin’s senior vice president for communications told the student newspaper last week that federal law prohibits nonprofits from engaging in political campaigns.
“In line with the law, Bowdoin has an established policy of not commenting on alumni while they are running for office,” he said.
A college spokesperson did not respond Wednesday to questions from the Press Herald about criticism from alums, but pointed to a short story posted on the college’s website that details Mamdani’s election success, along with Bowdoin’s history of alumni in politics. The college’s Instagram account shared that story along with a photo of Mamdani shortly after.
“Bowdoin joins with many voices from around the country in wishing the mayor-elect well as he steps into this important role,” the story concludes.
Rielly said Bowdoin’s reluctance to congratulate Mamdani in its Tuesday post was particularly noteworthy considering its core philosophy, “the common good.” He felt Mamdani’s campaign message exemplified that ideal of using a Bowdoin education to improve the world.
Blaine Stevens, who graduated from Bowdoin in 2023, also cited that phrase in an Instagram comment, where she called the college’s post “bland and dismissive.”
She was heartened, though, by the massive response from alumni.
“Seeing how many people were loudly saying, ‘This isn’t the celebration he deserves’ — even people that I only knew in passing — it reminded me why I love Bowdoin,” she said. “I hope that going forward the college will see this response from students and alumni, and will be more willing to celebrate Zohran and his accomplishments.”
Stevens said she comes from a Bowdoin family. Many of her relatives who are also alumni disagree with Mamdani politically but share her feelings about the college’s lack of public celebration.
She said she understands Bowdoin has to navigate a difficult political climate, but felt disappointed by the post, and worried that it could be related to donors. She pointed to recent reporting in the Bowdoin Orient about major college donors who supported Cuomo’s campaign, including Reed Hastings, a 1983 graduate who gave the college its largest-ever donation last year.
Rielly theorized that the silence could be a result of pressure the federal government has put on the college, which he found embarrassing.
Alumni were quick to point out that the college has highlighted other graduates’ success in politics. The college media team thoroughly profiled class of 2017’s Justin J. Pearson, a Tennessee state lawmaker who was expelled, then reinstated, after protesting gun violence on the House floor. DeRay McKesson, a 2007 graduate and one of the leading voices of the Black Lives Matter movement, has gotten a similar treatment. That happened under previous Bowdoin presidents.
Mamdani’s candidacy brought heightened attention to the small Brunswick liberal arts college, and not all of it positive. A New York Times story published last week highlighted conservative critics who argue Mamdani’s politics exemplify how institutions like Bowdoin can be “feckless workshops for leftist political orthodoxy.”
At Bowdoin more than a decade ago, Mamdani founded a chapter of Students of Justice in Palestine. The college faced a congressional committee investigation this year over an encampment organized by students in that same group. The college has since revoked that organization’s charter.
Last week several students on Bowdoin’s campus said they were following the race closely, both because of Mamdani’s connection to the college and because of excitement about his politics.
Bowdoin College Democrats, a political student organization, parodied the college’s statement in a Tuesday Instagram post, which used the same stock photo but included a headshot of Mamdani on the bus shelter, with the phrase “Victory for Mamdani ’14”
“This race marks an important milestone in the Democrats’ new path forward, and the Bowdoin College Democrats are elated and proud to see the success he had in this election,” the group wrote.
This story was originally published by the Maine Trust for Local News. Riley Board can be reached at [email protected].
