What Would Hayek and Mises Think about Mamdani?

Zohran Mamdani won the November 2025 election, becoming the first Democrat Socialist Shia Muslim mayor of New York City. He campaigned to implement a city rent freeze, increased city property tax on majority white neighborhoods, lower city property tax on black and brown neighborhoods, free bus fare to all riders, city-owned bodegas (small food stores) operating as non-profits, etc. Many of his voters like the idea of free stuff not realizing nothing in life is free.

If Friedrich von Hayek and Ludwig von Mises were alive in 2025, they would have some insightful thoughts for Zohran on the realities of socialism’s history. One particular set of thoughts from Hayek and Mises are captured here. Their writings contain many economic thoughts to refute Zohran’s socialism proposals. Hayek died in 1992. Mises died in 1973. Zohran was born in 1991 and is probably not aware of or read any writings by Hayek or Mises.

The Berlin Wall fell in November 1989 and was part of Communism’s fall in many central and eastern European countries that showed the multi-decade failure of Communism intertwined with socialism in each nation’s economy. This lesson of history is lost on Mamdani’s acolytes.

Hayek wrote in “The Intellectuals and Socialism,” “The socialist will, of course, see in this merely a proof that the more intelligent person is today bound to become a socialist.” He continues,

In particular, socialist thought owes its appeal to the young largely to its visionary character; the very courage to indulge in Utopian thought is in this respect a source of strength to the socialists which traditional liberalism sadly lacks…. What appeal to him are the broad visions, the specious comprehension of the social order as a whole which a planned system promises.

Mamdani’s broad visions to bring a socialist utopia through a planned system of city-owned bodegas and free bus rides to the five boroughs of New York City flies in the opposite direction of the reality of life of high apartment rent, high city bus fares, high city business regulations, high grocery prices, etc. These socialist utopia thoughts are great in his acolytes’ minds, but grate against the daily New York City individual economic realities. Hayek’s socialism insight is so true among the young.

Mises wrote in Interventionism: An Economic Analysis,

Under socialism all economic matters are the responsibility of the state. The government gives orders in all lines of production just as in the army or in the navy. There is no sphere of private activity, everything is directed by the government.

In Mamdani’s utopian vision, city central planners,

…will create a network of city-owned grocery stores focused on keeping prices low, not making a profit. Without having to pay rent or property taxes, they will reduce overhead and pass on savings to shoppers. They will buy and sell at wholesale prices, centralize warehousing and distribution, and partner with local neighborhoods on products and sourcing.

History shows government-owned and -operated grocery stores usually lack basic commodities for sale like beef, sugar, milk, bread, etc., individual product quality is low, and the government stores have little to no competition from other non-city-owned and -operated grocery stores. Look no further for examples in Cuba, North Korea, and Venezuela.

My sympathies go out to New Yorkers who see this part of Mamdani’s utopian plans as perverse. His centrally-planned utopia will be approved by many city council members and implemented by many city employees. The legacy of central planners will leave New Yorkers and the city hollowed out in ways we cannot imagine. The Big Apple will be more rotten at its core.