Houston police union seeks New York police officers following mayoral election

HOUSTON – The Houston Police Officers’ Union launched a viral social media campaign Tuesday night, less than an hour after Zohran Mamdani was projected to win the New York City mayoral election.

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A flyer that gained traction online posted by the Houston Police Officers’ Union listed reasons NYPD officers might consider transferring to the Houston Police Department.

“NYPD, are you disgusted with the election of Zohran Mamdani? Join us!” the flyer reads.

The flyer highlighted the recent HPD pay raise, support from the mayor, council and community, and a fair district attorney.

“This is all about recruiting,” HPOU President Doug Griffith said. “We are 1,200 officers short. So I don’t care if it’s two or 200. If we can get some great NYPD guys down here, we’ll take them.”

Mamdani was elected as New York City’s mayor on Tuesday and will become the youngest mayor of New York City in more than a century when he takes office on Jan. 1.

Mamdani was a fierce critic of the New York Police Department in 2020, calling for “this rogue agency” to be defunded and slamming it as “racist, anti-queer & a major threat to public safety.”

He has since apologized for those comments and said he doesn’t support defunding the police. Mamdani has also said he will ask the current NYPD commissioner to stay on the job, according to the Associated Press.

“How do you work for a boss that’s basically said he wants to defund you and call you racist? It’s almost a no-brainer,” Griffith said. “We’ve got a chief that supports us, we got a mayor, a city council. And again, the Texas legislature has been good to us. So we are clicking on all cylinders right now."

As an added incentive, the union posted about local bagel shops, Texas favorite grocer H-E-B, and just how far money goes in Houston when it comes to housing.

“There’s some tongue-in-cheek going on, absolutely,” said retired deputy Jay Coons, who is now an assistant professor at Sam Houston State University’s College of Criminal Justice. “That might provide the incentive for some officers there at NYPD who are a little ambivalent, who might be looking for a change. That might be the catalyst to say, you know what, ‘I’m going to check out Houston, see what they have to offer‘."

He added that NYPD officers are highly trained and respected.

A spokesperson for the Houston Police Department wouldn’t address the union’s posts, but said, “HPD is always hiring.”

Mayor John Whitmire’s office didn’t respond to a request for comment and neither did the Mamdani campaign.

The New York City Police Benevolent Association provided the following statement:

“As we have said since the beginning of this election cycle, actions matter far more than words. Mayor-Elect Mamdani has said many different things about police officers and his public safety plans. Now it is time for him to act. The PBA stands ready to meet action with action — whether that means working together to improve our members’ quality of life or pushing back to defend their safety and rights. If Mayor-Elect Mamdani is serious about protecting this city, he must work with us to address the NYPD’s historic staffing crisis. The mass exodus of police officers didn’t begin last night. It has been going on for years, and the time to fix it is now.”

On Monday, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott posted on X that he would be imposing a “100% tariff” on anyone looking to relocate to Texas from New York City after the election results.

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The post, which has been widely speculated to be a joke despite minimal confirmation, garnered national media attention.

Gov. Abbott also called for prayers for New York City.

KPRC 2 has reached out to Gov. Abbott’s office for clarification on his posts.