Democratic New York City mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani announced Monday he is boycotting a town hall with WABC News following Disney’s ABC taking Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show off the air.

On Wednesday, ABC announced that it is indefinitely pulling “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” in the wake of Kimmel’s remarks about Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk’s Sept. 10 assassination. Mamdani, an avowed socialist, said on Monday that he is scrapping the Sept. 25 town hall with WABC News following its parent company’s decision to suspend Kimmel’s show, amNewYork first reported on Monday.

“ABC pulled Jimmy Kimmel off the air after the [Federal Communications Commission (FCC)] sought to pressure them,” Mamdani said on Monday. “The message that it sends to each and every American across this country is a message the First Amendment is no longer a right that can be counted on, but rather that it is government which will determine what should and should not be discussed, what can and cannot be spoken. And we cannot normalize these kinds of acts nor offenses. These must be the basis upon which we act.” (RELATED: Disney Reportedly Shelved Jimmy Kimmel After He Planned To Double Down On Comments About Charlie Kirk Assassination)

BEVERLY HILLS, CALIFORNIA – MAY 20: Jimmy Kimmel speaks onstage at The Alliance For Women In Media Foundation’s 50th Annual Gracie Awards Gala at Beverly Wilshire, A Four Seasons Hotel on May 20, 2025 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images)

“We cannot understand this moment of authoritarianism as solely coming from the White House, when it is also characterized by the cowardice of those in response to it — the cowardice that we have seen typified whether by the parent company of ABC or by so-called leaders like [former New York Gov.] Andrew Cuomo and [Democratic New York City mayor] Eric Adams looking to the White House for their path to their future ambition,” Mamdani said, naming two of his opponents in the November mayoral election.

“We have to understand who suffers in these moments,” Mamdani continued. “It’s not just a question of Jimmy Kimmel himself, it’s also a question of the engineers, the writers, the musicians who are feeling this attack on the very city they call home. The message that it sends to each and every American across this country is a message that the First Amendment is no longer a right that can be counted on, but rather that it is the government which will determine what should and should not be discussed, what can and cannot be spoken.”

“We had some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize  this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it,” Kimmel said during a Sept. 15 monologue.

During the previous weekend, Republican Utah Gov. Spencer Cox told the Wall Street Journal that it was “very clear” to investigators that Kirk’s suspected assassin Tyler Robinson “was deeply indoctrinated with leftist ideology.”

FCC Chairman Brendan Carr notably threatened ABC over Kimmel’s comments about Kirk’s assassination during a Wednesday appearance on “The Benny Show,” telling Benny Johnson the FCC could “do this the easy way or the hard way.” Moreover, Carr is facing criticism from some Republicans over his response to the suspension of Kimmel’s late-night show.

On Wednesday, former Fox News host Bill O’Reilly said he believes that ABC’s decision to indefinitely take Kimmel’s late-night show off the air was not related to “censorship.”

Mamdani, a self-described Democratic socialist, has drawn criticism from both sides of the aisle over his far-left views. He has also faced backlash due to his repeatedly making anti-Israel comments.

Mamdani’s campaign and the Walt Disney Company did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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