New York City's 25th anniversary ceremony at Ground Zero begins at 8:30 a.m. ET this morning, and for the first time in the memorial's history, the mayor presiding over the five boroughs is attending over the objection of a six-figure petition signed largely by the people it's meant to honor.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani has confirmed he will stand among the crowd at the National September 11 Memorial & Museum's plaza ceremony despite a petition that had collected more than 100,000 signatures by this week demanding he stay away, according to CBS News New York. The petition, hand-delivered to City Hall, was started by 9/11 widower Giovanni Galante, whose wife Grace Catherine worked on the 105th floor of the North Tower.

'An Unwelcome Guest'

Family members who back the petition say their objection isn't rooted in Mamdani's faith or biography, but in specific decisions since he took office in January — chief among them his appointment of a chief counsel who has previously represented people accused of terror ties, and past associations critics say downplayed the threat of political violence. Former New York Gov. George Pataki and former Mayor Rudy Giuliani have also publicly urged Mamdani to skip the event, with Giuliani telling ABC7 New York, "I would be offended if Mamdani attended the ceremony."

"DEEPLY HURTFUL AND INAPPROPRIATE, LIKE AN UNWELCOME GUEST AT A DEEPLY PERSONAL CEREMONY."

That's how Galante describes the mayor's plan to attend. Other relatives interviewed this week said they intend to respond with silence rather than confrontation. "I would definitely ignore him," Galante added. Advocate John Feal, who has spent two decades fighting for 9/11 first-responder health funding, was blunter: "Until he does something proactive for the 9/11 community, he should just sit there in City Hall." Mamdani has held firm, saying in a statement that he will "proudly honor the families, the survivors, the first responders forever impacted by that horrific terror attack by standing alongside them at this year's 9/11 commemoration." He has scheduled at least eight separate 9/11 commemorations this week, including an address at the NYPD's official ceremony.

The dispute over Mamdani lands atop a ceremony already carrying extra weight this year. Organizers will read the names of 2,983 victims — those killed in the 2001 attacks plus the 1993 World Trade Center bombing — and will observe seven moments of silence rather than the usual six, adding a new pause to honor first responders and survivors who later died of cancers and other illnesses tied to the toxic dust released when the towers fell.

The political split extends beyond New York. President Trump will mark the day at the Pentagon for a second consecutive year rather than attending Ground Zero, a choice the White House has said reflects his wish to deliver remarks, something the nonpartisan Ground Zero ceremony does not permit for any elected official. Vice President JD Vance will represent the administration in Lower Manhattan alongside several former presidents, while other officials travel to the Flight 93 National Memorial in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Separately, the Tunnel to Towers Foundation concludes a 40-city tour today, retracing FDNY firefighter Stephen Siller's run through the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel with a 21-foot steel beam recovered from the South Tower.

The Ground Zero ceremony is invitation-only for victims' families and dignitaries, but will stream live at 911memorial.org as the moment of silence marking the first plane's impact, 8:46 a.m., approaches. Whether Mamdani's presence draws the quiet rebuke families have promised, or something louder, will play out in the hours ahead.