As the 25th anniversary of the September 11 attacks approaches, remembrance plans in New York are drawing renewed attention well beyond the city. In Manhattan, an online petition urging organizers to keep Mayor Zohran Mamdani from the annual Ground Zero ceremony has escalated into a public dispute over who should be present at one of the country’s most closely watched memorial events. Mamdani has said he will attend anyway.
Petition grows as mayor says he will attend
The petition targets New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and asks the National September 11 Memorial & Museum to exclude him from the September 11, 2026 commemoration, which marks 25 years since the attacks. CBS New York reported on July 27 that the petition had drawn thousands of signatures, including some from victims’ relatives, and identified Giovanni Galante, whose wife died in the North Tower, as one of the organizers. By this week, multiple reports described the tally as having surpassed 70,000 signatures, though that running total is tied to an online petition platform rather than a government process.
Organizers told local media they object to Mamdani’s attendance because of his public positions and associations, and because they want the 25th anniversary to center only on victims, survivors and first responders. CBS New York also reported that Monica Iken Murphy, who lost her husband in the South Tower, said some family members wanted “a little time for ourselves” at the ceremony. The petition language, as quoted by several outlets, says concerns have been raised about Mamdani’s record and whether his presence would fit the event’s purpose.
Mamdani responded directly when asked about the effort. In comments broadcast by CBS New York on July 27, he said he would “proudly honor the families, the survivors, the first responders” by standing alongside them at this year’s commemoration. That public answer is the clearest confirmed statement from the mayor on the dispute so far.
The local impact is centered on the National September 11 Memorial & Museum site in Lower Manhattan, where the official 25th anniversary commemoration is scheduled for September 11, 2026. The memorial states that the ceremony on the plaza will focus on an in-person reading of the names by family members, and its public calendar describes it as a private ceremony honoring those killed in the 2001 attacks and the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.
What is confirmed is that the memorial has not announced any change in attendance rules because of the petition. The institution said in a statement reported by CBS New York that it has “intentionally worked to keep the commemoration free of politics” and that government officials from across the political spectrum have attended simply to bear witness. The memorial also said elected officials do not deliver remarks and are asked to remain in a designated area.
What is not yet known is whether organizers will issue any further guidance specific to Mamdani before September 11. The memorial has not publicly released a separate policy naming invited officials, nor has it indicated that the mayor would have a speaking role. For New Yorkers planning around the anniversary, the event remains structured around victims’ families and formal moments of remembrance, not political speeches.
The immediate cause of the dispute is the petition campaign itself, which was launched by relatives of some victims and amplified through television, tabloid and online coverage in late July. CBS New York documented the organizers’ objections, while the memorial’s own 25th-anniversary materials show that this year’s observance carries unusual weight because it marks a quarter-century since the attacks. Milestone anniversaries typically draw heightened public attention, larger crowds and sharper debate over symbolism.
The broader context is that Mamdani has already faced organized opposition from some groups over other appearances tied to public remembrance and civic events. Reuters reported in April that his office said he would participate in a wreath-laying at the 9/11 Memorial during King Charles III’s visit, underscoring that he has already appeared at the site in an official capacity this year. FDNY also published a May account showing Mamdani at the memorial with city agency leaders ahead of the 25th anniversary.
For residents, the practical meaning is narrower than the online fight suggests. The memorial’s current public guidance indicates the ceremony will proceed under its established format, with family members reading names and officials present only in a limited, non-speaking role. Unless organizers announce a change, New Yorkers should expect the same core structure at Ground Zero on September 11, 2026, even as the debate over Mamdani’s presence continues.