Fact Check: Did Democrats float Tim Walz-Zohran Mamdani 2028 presidential ticket?

WASHINGTON, DC: Zohran Mamdani made headlines recently by winning New York City’s Democratic mayoral primary, and cementing his upset of former Governor Andrew Cuomo and sending him to the general election.

Mamdani said in a statement, "Last Tuesday, Democrats spoke in a clear voice, delivering a mandate for an affordable city, a politics of the future, and a leader unafraid to fight back against rising authoritarianism."

Recently, a rumor circulated online claiming that the Democratic Party was considering a 2028 presidential ticket featuring Minnesota Governor Tim Walz for president and Zohran Mamdani for vice president. But is there any truth to this? Let's find out below.

Claim: Democrats float Walz-Mamdani 2028 presidential ticket

In late June 2025, a rumor circulated online claiming that the US Democratic Party had started to consider a 2028 presidential ticket featuring Tim Walz for president and Zohran Mamdani for vice president.

Walz has earlier served as the vice-presidential running mate to former Vice President Kamala Harris during the 2024 elections. 

Meanwhile, On June 28,  Eric Daugherty, an assistant news director for Florida's Voice, posted on X, "UPDATE: Democrats begin to float running Tim Walz for president and Zohran Mamdani as Vice President in 2028."

Following this, the rumor circulated across social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and Threads.

False: Rumor originated from unofficial Tim Walz fan account

The claims made in the online rumor are false, as the rumor originated from an unofficial Tim Walz fan account on social media, according to Snopes.

Moreover, Mamdani was not born in the United States, and therefore, he is not eligible to run for president or vice president, the fact-checking outlet reported.

Furthermore, the outlet contacted Eric Daugherty to ask about the sources he used to report his alleged news. He responded via mail, "I am no fan of Snopes because of its bias, so I hope you prove me wrong in this instance. My post said that 'Democrats begin to float' running Walz and Mamdani. That post stemmed from a Democrat-run account named 'Walz for President 2028,' saying, 'thoughts on this ticket?' with 1.6K likes and 1.2M views, showing Walz and Mamdani."

The X account 'Walz for President 2028' did make the post on June 26, where the account posted pictures of Walz and Mamdani side by side and captioned it, "Thoughts on this ticket?"

However, the page's bio read, "Not affiliated with Tim Walz", thus confirming @Walz4Pres is an unofficial fan account.

Zohran Mamdani's bold response to capitalism

After winning the Democratic primary for New York City mayor, Zohran Mamdani ignited fierce debate across the country not because of policy specifics, but due to a viral CNN moment where he openly rejected capitalism.

Mamdani was pressed during a CNN interview on whether he supports capitalism, Buzzfeed reported.

"Do you like capitalism?" the host asked, and Zohran Mamdani replied without hesitation, "No. I have many critiques of capitalism."

He continued while quoting Dr Martin Luther King Jr, "I think ultimately, the definition for me, of why I call myself a democratic socialist, is the words of Dr King decades ago."

"Call it democracy or call it democratic socialism — there must be a better distribution of wealth for all of God's children in this country. That’s what I’m focused on, is dignity and taking on income inequality," Mamdani added.