Mayor Eric Adams just released a blistering statement criticizing the State Education Department’s refusal to approve special education services to students at six yeshivas. Those schools were deemed non-equivalent by SED earlier this year, and on May 15 SED issued a statement declaring that these yeshivas are no longer schools and are therefore ineligible for the protections contained in the legislation enacted to protect yeshivas. Ten days ago, after the New York Court of Appeals held that SED does not have the authority to close schools that are non-equivalent or to direct parents to unenroll their children from those schools, the Adams Administration informed SED that those children should now receive the services they need. SED refused to engage, or to issue written guidance.

Zohran Mamdani’s triumph in New York City’s Democratic mayoral primary has jolted the political establishment, but what’s even more surprising is the degree of Jewish support he secured despite his openly anti-Zionist – and arguably antisemitic – record. Mamdani, a Muslim progressive who has championed boycotts of Israel and made no secret of his sympathies for Palestinian activism, nonetheless attracted an estimated 20% of the city’s Jewish vote — a stunning figure given New York’s reputation as a global center of pro-Israel advocacy. Mamdani, whose platform includes plans to dramatically expand housing access and slash transit costs, positioned himself as a champion of social and racial justice.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) is under fire for her carefully crafted “Bronx girl” image, even after new revelation of her comfortable suburban upbringing. After a Yorktown High School yearbook photo went viral, Ocasio-Cortez took to X on Friday to defend herself, insisting her background is still rooted in struggle. “My mom cleaned houses and I helped,” she posted, claiming she exchanged chores for tutoring help and that splitting time between the Bronx and the suburbs shaped her views on inequality. But critics say the congresswoman is twisting her personal story to fit a political brand that never matched the facts.

Democratic New York City mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani repeatedly refused on Sunday to condemn the phrase “globalize the intifada,” a rallying cry used as an incitement to violence against Jews. Pressed three times during an interview on NBC’s Meet the Press, Mamdani would not explicitly reject the slogan, insisting, “That’s not language that I use,” and declaring that it is not the mayor’s job to “police language.” Mamdani, an outspoken anti-Israel activist who supports the boycott-Israel movement, has faced growing pressure to denounce the phrase, which is widely used by anti-Israel protest movements and associated with calls for violent attacks on Jews and Israelis.

A pair of newly dedicated Lakewood wedding halls — Ateres Blima and Ateres Esther — held their kvias mezuzah on Sunday, marking the beginning of a new era in local simcha planning. Located at 400 Oak Street, in a building named in memory of Mrs. Matel Leah Schron a”h, the halls were built to address a pressing need in the community: lowering the overwhelming cost of weddings. Backed by numerous donors and overseen by a board of askanim including R’ Mordy Schron, R’ Menashe Frankel, R’ Ari Stern, and R’ Avraham Meir Retkinski, the project was designed with a clear purpose — to reset community expectations and bring weddings back to a simpler, more manageable standard.

Republican mayoral hopeful Curtis Sliwa is drawing fierce criticism for stubbornly staying in a race that many warn could hand New York City to a radical socialist bent on dismantling the economic foundations of America’s largest metropolis. Sliwa, speaking Sunday on WABC’s “Cats Roundtable,” noted that Zohran Mamdani — a self-proclaimed Democratic socialist — has surged thanks to a powerful digital campaign targeting younger voters, but said his win his ultimately Mayor Adams’ fault. Mamdani, once a blip at just 1% in February, has since clinched the Democratic nomination and is poised to lead a city synonymous with free enterprise and capitalism. “There is no Zohran Mamdani if Eric Adams had done a decent job,” Sliwa argued, seeking to shift blame onto the embattled mayor.

Socialist NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani is standing firm on his controversial plan to raise property taxes on what he calls “richer and whiter neighborhoods” — and went even further Sunday, saying billionaires shouldn’t exist at all. Appearing on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Mamdani claimed his tax plan was “not driven by race” — despite his campaign platform explicitly targeting white homeowners. “That is just a description of what we see right now. It’s not driven by race. It’s more of an assessment of what neighborhoods are being under-taxed versus over-taxed,” Mamdani said. “We’ve seen time and again that this is a property tax system that is inequitable. It’s one that actually Eric Adams ran on, saying that he would change in the first 100 days,” he added.

Zohran Mamdani spoke at a rally in Harlem on Saturday as he sought to build on momentum from New York City’s Democratic primary, telling the crowd that people struggling to pay for housing, groceries and bus fare are hungry for change. Mamdani appeared at a National Action Network rally days after declaring victory over former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, the presumed favorite in the primary. Results will be finalized after the city’s ranked choice vote-counting resumes Tuesday. “What our victory showed on election night was less a victory between one man and another, but a victory for a city that New Yorkers can afford,” Mamdani said at a rally attended by Black clergy and filmmaker Spike Lee The Rev.

In a powerful message marking Gimmel Tammuz, President Donald J. Trump sent a letter to the Rebbe’s Ohel, calling the Rebbe “one of the most dynamic and influential faith leaders in modern history.” President Trump reflected on his visit to the Ohel last year, noting how he personally drew strength and inspiration from the Rebbe’s enduring legacy.

In a major win for individuals with hearing impairments, the New York State Legislature has passed a landmark bill—championed by Assemblyman Aron Wieder and Brooklyn State Senator Sam Sutton—that mandates insurance coverage for backup cochlear implant processors, closing a critical gap in existing healthcare policies. The legislation, introduced by Assemblyman Wieder as bill A.6314-A, was inspired by a powerful encounter with a constituent whose daughter relies on a cochlear implant to hear. When the family’s insurance denied coverage for a backup device, the young girl was left in silence during periods when her primary processor needed repairs—an all-too-common scenario for cochlear users across the state.