Rudy Giuliani says Mayor Zohran Mamdani should skip New York City’s 25th-anniversary 9/11 ceremonies, while Gov. Kathy Hochul insists the mayor belongs there.

Giuliani made his case during a Sunday Newsmax interview, saying there was “no question” Mamdani should stay away, the New York Post reported.

The ceremonies will mark 25 years since the September 11 attacks, which killed more than 2,700 people in New York City. The Post also described an online petition urging Mamdani to stay away as having nearly 100,000 signatures.

Giuliani, who led New York City through the attacks, said the focus should remain on the victims’ families and the nation’s remembrance.

He told Newsmax:

“The reality is this ceremony is for the families and for America to remember historically. Having lost friends there and being very close to many of the families, it offends me that he’s coming.”

Critics demand that Mamdani reject Piker’s 9/11 remark

The fight centers partly on criticism of Mamdani’s association with Twitch streamer Hasan Piker. The Post said Piker previously declared, “America deserved 9/11,” though he later rejected that comment.

The memorial dispute adds another test for a mayor already at the center of sharp public fights, including a separate clash over Mamdani’s city-run grocery plan.

Former New York Gov. George Pataki, who was in office during the attacks, told City & State that Mamdani should stay home unless he clearly rejects the views at issue.

“With respect to the mayor, I think anyone who doesn’t intentionally distance themselves from Hasan Piker, who has said that America deserved the attacks of September 11th, should not be there.”

Pataki also pressed Mamdani over the phrase “globalize the intifada.” He described it as a call for violence against Jews and said the mayor faced a direct choice.

“I think [Mamdani] has two choices: reject those extremist views against America and calling for violence against Jews, or voluntarily decide it’s not in the families’ and the victims’ interest for him to be there.”

New York Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman joined Giuliani and Pataki in calling for Mamdani to stay away.

Hochul says the mayor’s office requires Mamdani to attend

Hochul rejected Giuliani’s position on Monday. She argued that Mamdani should attend because he holds the office of New York City mayor.

Her defense comes as Mamdani’s City Hall faces other disputes over the reach of municipal power, including litigation tied to his two-year rent freeze.

Hochul said most families would find Mamdani’s absence more insulting than his presence. She also accused Republicans of turning a communal ceremony into a divisive fight.

“He absolutely should be there. He is the mayor of New York City and I have utmost respect for the small number of families that have expressed that, but I think it would be more insulting to the vast majority if he did not come.”

Hochul said the mayor should appear with law enforcement officers, first responders and victims’ families to show shared opposition to terrorism.

That argument rests on the duties of the office. Giuliani and Pataki are making a different case: ceremonial attendance does not erase a mayor’s duty to answer plainly for the company he keeps and the rhetoric he tolerates. Their stated demand is a public rejection of the views they condemn.

Mamdani says he will stand with families and first responders

Mamdani’s office said in July that he planned to attend. His broader record has already fueled conservative criticism, including warnings about his socialist agenda for New York City.

His office framed the 9/11 appearance as an act of remembrance rather than a political statement.

“I will proudly honor the families, the survivors, the first responders forever impacted by that horrific terror attack by standing alongside them at this year’s 9/11 commemoration, reaffirming that we will never forget the solemn day felt by all of us who call this city home and, frankly, by all of us who call this country home.”

The dispute leaves one clear standard for public leadership: remembrance deserves more than attendance. It also requires moral clarity about those who excuse terror or blame its victims.