Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s choose to steer town’s authorities corruption watchdog was grilled by native lawmakers for donating and volunteering for his marketing campaign throughout a tense back-and-forth Monday.
Nadia Shihata, a former federal prosecutor nominated by Hizzoner as Division of Investigation commissioner, confronted pointed questions from Metropolis Council members throughout her affirmation listening to about her ties to the brand new mayor and her skill to be impartial.
Shihata revealed that she contributed 4 occasions, for a complete of $700, to the democratic socialist’s rebel mayoral marketing campaign final yr and that it marked her first time donating to a candidate in metropolis or state elections.
Councilwoman Nantasha Williams (D-Queens) famous that heads of the oversight physique have historically abstained from donating to the mayors appointing them — earlier than urgent Shihata on another marketing campaign involvement.
Shihata admitted that she’d additionally canvassed for Mamdani’s marketing campaign as soon as, knocking on doorways one evening for “round an hour,” along with the donations.
“As an elected official myself it’s really easy to get somebody to donate a few {dollars}, however in the case of really having individuals bodily knock doorways, I discover that the those that have canvassed actually, actually are dedicated to what I’m doing versus the those that donate cash,” Williams emphasised.
Shihata — who served within the US Legal professional’s Workplace for the Jap District of New York for 11 years — defended her skill to stay neutral when pressed by Williams on whether or not she had a pre-existing bias in favor of the mayor.
“I believe anybody who is aware of me or who has labored with me is aware of my stage of professionalism and integrity over my 20-year profession, and that I’ll strategy each investigation, together with any which will contain the mayor or any senior officers in his administration,” she mentioned.
The DOI assisted the feds within the September 2024 indictment of then-Mayor Eric Adams — previous to the Division of Justice dropping the costs towards him — in addition to in different corruption associated probes involving Metropolis Corridor.
Federal elections data present Shihata has made practically $5,000 in contributions since 2008 to varied Democratic and lefty politicians during the last decade, together with to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio- Cortez and former congressman and hearth alarm aficionado Jamaal Bowman.
Shihata was additionally questioned in the course of the listening to about her relationship with the mayor’s chief counsel and high authorized advisor Ramzi Kassem, as his place would fall beneath the DOI’s purview.
Shihata testified that she utilized for the place at DOI after Kassem reached out to her to gauge her curiosity, although claimed she had considered vying for it when information broke days earlier that Adams-era Commissioner Jocelyn Strauber was leaving the highest perch.
“He didn’t encourage me to use. He didn’t ask me to use. He requested me if I used to be . I thought of whether or not I used to be, after which I submitted an software,” she mentioned.
Shihata said that she has recognized Kassem professionally since she graduated legislation faculty in 2003 however downplayed their relationship in the course of the listening to.
“We’ve got seen one another periodically, as soon as each few years, possibly exchanged a couple of emails as soon as each few years,” she mentioned.
Shihata additionally dominated out instantly recusing herself of any investigation coping with Kassem, as an alternative saying that she would solely accomplish that if suggested by the DOI’s inner chief counsel.
Senior Metropolis Corridor spokesperson Dora Pekec defended Mamdani’s choose in an announcement.
“The Mayor was proud to appoint Nadia Shihata for DOI Commissioner due to her demonstrated integrity, her in depth expertise as a federal prosecutor on the U.S. Legal professional’s Workplace for the Jap District of New York, and her observe report of rooting out corruption all through her profession,” she mentioned.
The Invoice de Blasio-era DOI commissioner Mark Peters is among the few examples the place the oversight head had donated to the mayoral administration appointing them.
