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New York City Mayor Zahran Mamdani revived a long-dormant City Hall tradition on Saturday by diving into a public pool in East Harlem to celebrate the opening of the city’s 2026 outdoor pool season while wearing a full suit and tie.Mamdani’s wetsuit-clad dive kicked off New York City’s summer pool season, violating the pool’s dress code.The mayor jumped into the Thomas Jefferson Pool on East 114th Street alongside Manhattan Borough President Brad Hoylman-Segal and Parks Commissioner Tricia Shimamura, becoming the first New York City mayor in more than a decade to participate in the ceremonial plunge. The New York Post noted that Mamdani technically violated swimming rules by entering the water in a uniform. The mayor later republished the tabloid’s story on X with a video of his dive, joking: “When they said ‘wear a suit,’ I just assumed…”
The annual tradition was skipped during the terms of Eric Adams and Bill de Blasio. Michael Bloomberg was the last mayor to make that decision in 2013. Mamdani had indicated in March that he “might commit” to marking the ritual when asked about it by City reporter Katie Honan.After climbing out of the waist-deep water, Mamdani greeted residents gathered at the pool, creating another landmark for the city.
“We are very excited to celebrate 90 years of public swimming in our city,” Mamdani told reporters as he donned his wet suit. “This is a moment that New Yorkers across the five boroughs are celebrating.”That memory goes back to 1936, when then-Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia, whom Mamdani often described as New York City’s greatest leader, oversaw a major expansion of the city’s public swimming facilities. With support from President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Works Progress Administration, the project opened 11 new public swimming pools throughout the city. Known for their distinctive architecture and advanced chlorination and filtration systems, these pools were considered landmark public works and still serve New Yorkers nearly nine decades later.