How does Zohran Mamdani's attendance compare to other NY Assembly Democrats?
Executive summary
Zohran Mamdani was present for the first 41 of 71 New York Assembly session days in 2025 and was absent for roughly one-third of the chamber’s session days after the spring—making him the Democrat with the most absences in the Assembly that year, according to attendance records reported by the Times Union (71 total session days; Mamdani present first 41 days) [1]. Other outlets and critics cited missed votes and absences while he campaigned for mayor; reporting documents disagreement over scale and context [2] [1].
1. The raw attendance picture: a third of session days missed
Official and media records show the Assembly gaveled into session 71 days in 2025 and Mamdani was present for the first 41 days before being absent for the remainder of the session—about one-third of total session days absent overall and the highest absence count among Democrats that year, per the Times Union’s review of attendance records [1]. The paper frames his absences as concentrated in the final month after the budget was passed and when additional session days were added [1].
2. How reporters and opponents framed those absences
Rivals and some outlets used the attendance figures as a critique of Mamdani’s commitment to Albany while he campaigned for mayor. The New York Post and campaign opponents claimed he missed roughly half of Assembly votes while on the campaign trail and noted he collected pay after the budget vote but did not return for the rest of the session (reported in a campaign-critique context in secondary reporting) [2]. The Times Union report, relying on FOIL-obtained attendance records, stressed his perfect attendance through the first 41 days, making the absences a sudden, late-session pattern [1].
3. Context that matters: session length, added days and timing
The Assembly’s 71 session-day figure includes originally scheduled days plus three days later added to the calendar and a decision by lawmakers to remain in Albany during a delayed budget negotiation in April [1]. That timing matters: Mamdani’s attendance record was perfect through the first 41 days and his absences occurred after the budget passed and after extra days were tacked on—facts the Times Union uses to contextualize the magnitude and timing of the absences [1].
4. Competing metrics: votes missed vs. days present
Different outlets measure “attendance” differently. The Times Union counts days the chamber gaveled in and whether members were present that day [1]. Other reporting and critics emphasize missed roll-call votes or campaign-related absences—claims that appear in coverage and debate exchanges but are framed as political attacks in those sources [2]. Available sources do not mention a single, standardized metric reconciling days-gaveled vs. votes cast across all outlets; that discrepancy explains some of the dispute over how severe Mamdani’s absences were [1] [2].
5. Comparison to colleagues and outliers
Reporting identifies Mamdani as the Democrat with the most absences in the chamber in 2025 but notes an extreme outlier: Republican Assemblyman David G. McDonough did not physically enter the Assembly chamber at all during the session, giving context that Mamdani’s absences, while high among Democrats, were not the only absentee story in the chamber [1]. The Times Union report positions Mamdani at the top of Democratic absences but stops short of declaring that his absences were unprecedented for the Assembly as a whole [1].
6. Political stakes and messaging: why attendance became a campaign issue
Attendance was used as both a factual record and a political cudgel. In at least one mayoral debate, Andrew Cuomo labeled Mamdani as having “the worst attendance record in the Assembly,” and other campaign pieces cited missed votes and few sponsored laws as evidence of ineffectiveness—arguments rooted in attendance reporting and legislative output but amplified for political effect [2]. Mamdani’s defenders can point to his perfect attendance through 41 days and that key work (budget passage) had occurred when his absences began [1].
7. What reporting leaves unclear or unaddressed
Available sources do not provide a line-by-line reconciliation of every missed roll-call vote, reasons for each absence, or whether Mamdani’s absences were formally excused; they also do not offer Mamdani’s detailed response to each attendance allegation in the cited pieces [1] [2]. Ballotpedia and the Assembly directory document his legislative record and committee memberships but do not resolve the attendance dispute’s finer points [3] [4]. For a full, definitive accounting one would need the underlying roll-call logs, excuse records, and Mamdani’s contemporaneous statements—documents not provided in the current reporting [1] [2].
Bottom line: records reported by the Times Union show Mamdani missed about a third of the Assembly’s 71 session days in 2025, the most absences among Democrats, but the metric and political framing vary across sources and campaign critics amplified that data into broader claims about his effectiveness [1] [2].