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New York City’s Mayor, Zohran Mamdani, remains determined to make an appearance on “Saturday Night Live,” despite previous setbacks.
Back in March, Page Six revealed that Mamdani’s team had attempted to secure him a spot on the iconic sketch comedy show as part of his 2025 campaign efforts. However, their proposal was turned down by SNL’s legendary producer, Lorne Michaels.
Undeterred by the initial rejection, Mamdani’s supporters are reportedly taking a different tack. They are engaging in a more subtle strategy, enlisting the help of close friends and allies to discreetly advocate for his case to Michaels.
“It’s more of a whisper campaign now,” a source confided. “Mamdani isn’t making direct requests himself; instead, people within his circle are casually bringing it up to Lorne and other NBC executives.”
According to insiders, the Mayor has long harbored a dream of appearing on “SNL,” and his determination to achieve this goal remains unwavering.
Perhaps he should have stuck with his rap career as Mr. Cardamom, though we are not sure how well his lyrics praising convicted terror-funding group the Holy Land Five would go over with televisions Standards and Practices.
A rep for SNL tells us “This is not true. Nothing has come our way.”
A source close to Mamdani tells us “that there has been no formal ask made.”
The show is currently on summer hiatus until late September or October.
In March, Page Six reported that Mamdani’s camp had pitched him to appear on the late night show during his campaign.
“Mamdani was pitched, but ultimately for creative reasons, they went with comedians instead,” a source told Page Six at the time.
The role went to Ramy Youssef, who portrayed the democratic socialist during an election sketch on Nov. 1, 2025, alongside Miles Teller as Democrat Andrew Cuomo and Shane Gillis as Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa.
Mamdani took so much joy in the impersonation, he posted clips and video of himself laughing with Yussef on FaceTime while the comic was still in costume.
“Live from New York’ I got roasted by,” Mamdani posted on his social media.
A source told us at the time that Michaels was open to meeting the mayor, just off the air.
“Lorne is happy to meet with Mayor Mamdani,” a source close to the SNL big told us.t
Several politicians have been on the show in the past including NYC mayor Ed Koch and former mayor Rudy Giuliani. Donald Trump hosted twice and Kamala Harris and Hillary Clinton made cameos.
A new FCC Equal Time Rule — which requires broadcast stations to give equal opportunities to candidates for the same office — could make it harder for the show to have politicians on.