One of Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani’s new appointees resigned after just a day on the job over decade-old social media posts that recalled antisemitic tropes.
Newly minted Director of Appointments Catherine Almonte Da Costa tendered her resignation this afternoon just hours after her past comments came to light.
“As the mother of Jewish children, I feel a profound sense of sadness and remorse at the harm these words have caused,” she said in a statement. “As this has become a distraction from the work at hand, I have offered my resignation.”
In a series of social media posts, Da Costa fired off statements that included: “Money hungry Jews smh”; “Woo! Promoted to the upstairs office today! Working alongside these rich Jewish peeps.”; and “Far Rockaway train is the Jew train,” according to the Judge Street Journal, which highlighted the posts before Da Costa deleted her X account.
Mamdani has struggled to win over Jewish communities, which — uncomfortable with his past criticism of Israel and his failure to condemn the phrase “globalize the intifada” — staunchly opposed his candidacy. The newly revealed tweets from a now-former top aide do little to help him mend those deep divisions, as evidenced by social media posts from the Anti-Defamation League, which has a contentious relationship with the incoming administration.
“Tweeting about ‘Money hungry Jews’ is indefensible,” the New York and New Jersey chapter of the organization wrote, noting that many of Da Costa’s posts echoed antisemitic tropes. “We appreciate Da Costa has relationships with members of the Jewish community, but her posts require immediate explanation — not just from Ms. Da Costa, but also from the Mayor-Elect.”
Da Costa apologized for her remarks, which were made when she was between the ages of 19 and 20.
“I spoke with the mayor-elect this afternoon, apologized, and expressed my deep regret for my past statements," she said.
Mamdani also condemned the remarks.
“Catherine expressed her deep remorse over her past statements and tendered her resignation, and I accepted,” the mayor-elect said in a statement.
The incident raises serious questions about the transition’s vetting process.
For such an obvious thing to eyeball before hiring someone into one of the most highly scrutinized administrations in recent memory, Pekec said the transition was unaware of the posts when it brought Da Costa aboard.
Da Costa, who was born in the Domincan Republic, had more recent thoughts on the onboarding process: “When we operate the way White power has operated for generations by opening doors for our own, is it considered nepotism?” she wrote in 2019. “Or is it just leveling the playing field?”
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