NYC Mayor's Surprise Wedding Officiating Creates Unforgettable Moments
In a heartwarming Valentine's Day gesture, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani made an unannounced visit to the Manhattan Marriage Bureau last Thursday, personally officiating weddings for six unsuspecting couples. The spontaneous act created memorable moments for couples who had arrived for what they expected to be routine civil ceremonies.
A Quiet Visit with Big Impact
According to reports, Mayor Mamdani officiated weddings for six couples on February 5th without any prior public announcement. His office later released a video on YouTube Saturday morning to commemorate Valentine's Day, capturing the special moments from the surprise visit.
In the released video, Mamdani reflected on the experience, stating: "I think it's the best of New York. You see all these couples, so many different stories, so many different ages, so many different lives, and they're all coming to get married."
Couples Share Their Unexpected Experiences
For Matthew Cruz and Molly McGhee, their wedding day had already taken an unexpected turn before the mayor's surprise appearance. Approximately one hour before their scheduled 10:30 a.m. ceremony, the couple realized they had forgotten their marriage license. In frigid 10-degree weather, Cruz, a 30-year-old audio engineer, biked back to their Brooklyn apartment on an electric CitiBike while McGhee, 31, waited anxiously. He returned just in time for their appointment.
Inside the clerk's office, they encountered their second unexpected twist of the day: the mayor offering to officiate their ceremony. "Are you kidding me?" Ms. McGhee exclaimed upon the offer. The couple immediately agreed, though Cruz admitted, "It took me a full 45 seconds to get our rings out because I was shaking a little bit."
McGhee later noted that the mayor conducted the ceremony thoughtfully, including correctly gendering her spouse, who uses they/them pronouns. The couple, who have been together for twelve years after meeting at a poetry reading while students at Champlain College in Vermont, appreciated the special touch.
"I love that the mayor was there, but I'll be honest, my focus was not on him," Ms. McGhee confessed. Following the approximately five-minute ceremony, the newlyweds rode the subway with family to Bryant Park, took photographs at the New York Public Library, and celebrated with a seafood tower at a nearby restaurant.
Historical Context and Official Perspective
Michael McSweeney, who has served as city clerk since 2009, told The New York Times he could not recall another instance of a sitting mayor officiating public weddings at the clerk's office, commonly referred to as City Hall. He also could not think of another mayor who had held his own marriage ceremony at the location.
Interestingly, Mamdani himself had married artist Rama Duwaji at the same office nearly a year earlier. McSweeney clarified that the six couples were not specially selected but were already scheduled for Thursday morning appointments. Staff members simply offered them the option of having the mayor conduct their ceremonies.
"All of the couples were somewhere between happy and thrilled," Mr. McSweeney reported.
More Surprised Couples Share Their Stories
Emily Grimmius, 30, a Manhattan lawyer, and Muhammad Saleem, 28, a start-up founder, were among the other couples surprised that morning. "I expected the day to be, like, government paperwork," Ms. Grimmius said. "And then you walk in, and it's your wedding, and you're a little star-struck by the mayor."
Saleem described the moment as distinctly representative of New York City. "It's the epitome of New York: You don't know who you are going to meet," he observed. "There is nothing predictable, and that's the beauty of the city, right?"
The couple met in 2024 through friends connected to Columbia University, where Saleem was a student. Grimmius had moved east from Washington and California, while Saleem grew up in Pakistan before relocating to Chicago.
The Happiest Government Building Experience
Another couple, Michael and Minji Tzeng, arrived for their 11:15 a.m. appointment expecting a small ceremony with family. Ms. Tzeng, a 29-year-old data engineer at a nonprofit organization, said she chose the Manhattan office specifically because it was the most photogenic of the city clerk's locations.
Instead, Mr. Tzeng, a 30-year-old medical resident, found himself shaking hands with the mayor, who complimented his black-and-gray striped tie and mentioned owning the same one.
After the ceremony, the newlyweds returned to their Upper East Side apartment, made ramen, and began texting friends photographs of what Ms. Tzeng described as their "wedding crasher." "They were like, Wait, is this real?" she recalled. "Are you sure it's not A.I.?"
The surprise wedding officiating created what many described as the happiest government building experience imaginable, turning routine paperwork into cherished memories for six couples on a cold February morning in New York City.
