Courtesy of JTA. Photo credit: Angela Weiss/AFP via Getty Images
Jessica Tisch has drawn praise for cracking down on corruption in the upper ranks of the NYPD, as well as for the city’s reduction in crime and record-low shooting incidents so far in 2025
(JTA) — NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch, who comes from a prominent Jewish family, has accepted the offer to stay in her current role under Zohran Mamdani, the mayor-elect announced Nov. 19.
“Together, we will deliver a city where rank-and-file police officers and the communities they serve alike are safe, represented, and proud to call New York their home,” Mamdani said in a statement.
The announcement comes about one month after a mayoral debate where Mamdani declared that he wanted to keep Tisch in her role, and on the heels of speculation that Tisch, who did not publicly comment on the offer until Nov. 19, might decline.
Tisch is the first Jewish member of Mamdani’s administration, which he has only begun to fill out after passing over a key Jewish ally during the election, Comptroller Brad Lander, for a role.
A pair of major Jewish organizations’ leaders called the appointment of Tisch reassuring for the city’s Jews.
“We’re deeply grateful that Jessica Tisch has agreed to continue serving as Police Commissioner,” said Eric Goldstein, CEO of UJA-Federation of New York, in a statement. “Amid escalating antisemitism, our community is reassured by her strong leadership.”
Mark Treyger, CEO of the Jewish Community Relations Council of New York, said Tisch remaining in her role was an “excellent and reassuring decision that will help protect not only the Jewish community, but all of New York’s diverse communities.”
Two-thirds of the city’s Jewish voters did not vote for Mamdani. His Jewish critics have expressed nervousness about being led by a mayor who is opposed to Israel as a Jewish state and who has been accused by a number of Jewish leaders of feeding into antisemitism amid a continuous rise in anti-Jewish hate crimes.
Mamdani has said that his administration “will protect Jewish New Yorkers on the street, on the subway, and in their synagogues.”
There are many differences between Mamdani, a democratic socialist and anti-Zionist; and Tisch, a billionaire heiress whose family members donated over $1 million to a super PAC supporting Andrew Cuomo in the election Mamdani won.
Mamdani participated in pro-Palestinian protests for a ceasefire in Gaza as early as October 2023, whereas Tisch has spoken critically of those protests. She spoke at the Anti-Defamation League’s summit in March and said that many “college campus protests were especially despicable, with open blatant displays of intolerance” toward Jewish students; Mamdani has sparred with the ADL, saying its CEO does not represent Jewish New Yorkers.
The decision to work together indicates a willingness by both Mamdani and Tisch to overlook those differences, which include not only Israel and antisemitism, but also certain aspects of police work.
“Now, do the Mayor-elect and I agree on everything? No, we don’t,” Tisch wrote in a department-wide email. “But in speaking with him, it’s clear that we share broad and crucial priorities: the importance of public safety, the need to continue driving down crime, and the need to maintain stability and order across the department.”
Tisch has drawn praise for cracking down on corruption in the upper ranks of the NYPD, as well as for the city’s reduction in crime and record-low shooting incidents so far in 2025. In a contentious general election, retaining Tisch — who was originally appointed by Mayor Eric Adams — was a rare point of agreement among Mamdani, Cuomo and the Republican Curtis Sliwa. The New York Times reported that Lander, who ran in the primary, was the first candidate to float the idea that Tisch could be retained under a progressive mayor.
Major Jewish organizations in the city responded positively to the Nov. 19 announcement.
Treyger, head of the JCRC, said Tisch “has consistently shown up for Jewish New Yorkers facing unprecedented levels of antisemitic attacks and has worked to strengthen community partnerships, which is central to JCRC-NY’s mission to build a more interconnected New York.”
