Supermarkets Take Mamdani To Court Over His Plans For Government-Owned Grocery Stores

Plaintiffs united under the Multicultural Business Coalition sued Mamdani in state court, alleging their civil rights will be violated if city-run grocery stores are opened.

The second lawsuit alleges Mamdani’s administration didn’t engage in a proper analysis of the impact municipal grocery stores with reduced prices will have on current grocers.

“Plaintiffs have been denied equal protection where the Plaintiffs, predominately immigrant and minority owned grocery stores, are unable to offer similarly discounted products of the NYC-GP, and therefore, the former are being unduly denied the equal protection of the subsidized municipal grocery stores (i.e., NYC-GP), where the Defendants have failed to take corrective action, namely meaningfully study and analysis to avoid furthering historic discriminatory exclusion, and exclusion generally,” the first lawsuit, obtained by Fox Business Network, states.

“Therefore, the Plaintiffs are suffering undue harm,” attorneys for the plaintiffs add.

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JUST IN

— Grocery store and bodega owners in NYC are now suing Zohran Mamdani.

They claim city stores get free rent and taxpayer money and sell staples 30% cheaper, so private bodegas and markets next door can’t compete and many will close.

He’s going to absolutely DESTROY… pic.twitter.com/m7kIIei9aU

— American AF

(@iAnonPatriot) August 24, 2026

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There is a market on whether it happens at all. Mamdani opening a city owned grocery store by December 31 is 34 percent and dropped 16 points today. The lawsuit is moving the odds faster than the policy is.

— MarketCalled (@MarketCalled) August 24, 2026

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Follow the money and who gets the contracts to run those stores. You will find the fraud and kickbacks

— Mike (@Mike48659263089) August 24, 2026

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The city “failed to study the discriminatory effects” of the municipal stores on the family-owned bodegas and grocery stores owned by Hispanics, Arabs and Asians, according to the second filing, which asks the court to force the city to perform an economic analysis.

Asked about the Monday lawsuits at an unrelated press conference in Queens, Mamdani said, “I’m confident both in the legality of this, that it will stand up in court and the importance of delivering it”

MBC was formed earlier this year to oppose the mayor’s plan, which will cost taxpayers $70 million to build. The stores will offer a 30% discount on basic items like produce, meat, milk, cheese and bread. City Hall projects the markdown will save shoppers an average of $90 a month or $1,000 a year.

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