Zohran Mamdani Just Got The Cutest Dating Advice Ever From A Gay Guy

Happy Pride to everyone, but especially New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani.

Ahead of the Big Apple Pride Month festivities this weekend, the 34-year-old zaddy elected official chatted with Allan Dabrio Marrero, a queer New Yorker, on his live-streamed web show, Talk With the People.

Politics, but make it gay!

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The interview, which was recorded on Thursday, felt timely to say the least; Marrero, who immigrated from the Cayman Islands, was detained by ICE for 150 days and his husband led a well-documented fight to get him home.

It’s a heavy topic, but Mamdani (and his charismatic smile) instantly put Marrero at ease.

SCOOP: NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani's guest on today's 4:30 p.m. ET "Talk With The People" Twitch stream will be Allan Dabrio Marrero, who was detained by ICE for 150 days after showing up to a routine green card interview.

Marrero was transferred across the country, including… pic.twitter.com/iumYmRQOyB

— MeidasTouch (@MeidasTouch) June 25, 2026

Of course, it helped that the mayor served his guest some soft balls first.

Marrero, who sported pink hair for Pride Month, talked effusively about his husband, Matthew, whom he referred to as his “magical unicorn.” Aw!

Notably, the two bonded over finding their partners online. (Famously, Mamdani and his wife, Rama Duwaji, met via Hinge.)

That said, gay and straight relationships are not created equal, and Marrero shared a hilarious story highlighting the differences. LOL.

Watch.

Marrero: I met Matthew through an online Instagram Live.

Mamdani: You can find love anywhere. You found love on an Instagram Live.

Marrero: I did. 

Mamdani: I found love on Hinge. pic.twitter.com/0I2L4HmuZT

— Acyn (@Acyn) June 25, 2026

As Marrero explained, he met Matthew “through an online Instagram Live.” Sounds about right!

One of Matthew’s friends was hosting a show, and when Marrero got a notification that one of his friends was watching, he hopped on. Eventually, Matthew was invited onscreen as a guest.

“I was like, ‘Who is that,'” Marrero explained. “I was so curious … I came off the live and went straight into stalker mode. I went into his page and started liking a whole bunch of his pictures.”

The surprising part? It worked, and the two men now live together in Harlem with their rescue dog. We love love!

“Usually, I would say that never works, you can never like your way into an interaction,” Mamdani remarked, adding, “I found love on Hinge, but Instagram Live, that’s awesome.”

(Still, he cautioned viewers that others’ “rate of success” on Instagram Live will probably “be a little lower.” LOL.)

Zohran Mamdani should wear a thong for Pride month

— Doritscigarette (@Bardioplegia) June 20, 2026

That said, Marrero really knew Matthew was the one after they began talking for four to six hours on the phone daily, a romantic image the mayor couldn’t shake.

“What I love about your story is, at one level, it feels so profoundly 2026,” he explained. “And at the other level, the idea of you just on the phone for hours just feels like such an old love.”

Mamdani, who recently delivered on his promise to freeze rent in 1 million New York City apartments, added that their relationship was “a beautiful thing.”

“What I really appreciate about the way you describe the love is to be seen, to be safe, to be yourself,” he said. “And I know that so many in the city, they want nothing more than that.”

Marrero: We went in and decided to change my status. And, you know, we thought we crossed our t’s and dotted all our i’s, but it didn’t turn out that way. And I got detained on November 24th, 2025, and for five months I was separated from my husband. And it was torture. It was… pic.twitter.com/EWEwHm7k6F

— Acyn (@Acyn) June 25, 2026

Later in the conversation, Marrero opened up about his traumatic experience being detained by ICE, dealing with “homophobic” and “racist” officers in Delaney Hall, and moving through Alligator Alcatraz.

Now that he’s on the other side, he stressed the importance of queer people finding and holding onto their people.

“What I would say to the young LGBTQ+ people that may be in fear is to find your community,” Marrero said. “Because in community, for me, that’s where I felt safe. Try not to be alone.”

For his part, Mamdani thanked Marrero for sharing his experiences, which highlight that “there is no one story” in the LGBTQ+ community.

“Sometimes, we speak about immigration and queer rights and things as if they’re somehow separate,” he added. “Your story shows just how much of this is intertwined together.”

It’s a powerful sentiment going into the weekend, and a reminder that it is a happy Pride, indeed.

Watch their full interview below.

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