Elk Grove Mayor's Criticism of Mai Vang Exposes Her Political Hypocrisy

In hotly contested elections in the age of social media, there is one activity you can reliably count on: political surrogates acting on behalf of their preferred candidates. The 21st century version of a hatchet man.

It becomes particularly amusing when those surrogates are elected officials who find themselves entangled in their own inconsistencies.

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Such was the case for Elk Grove Mayor Bobbie Singh-Allen, who condemned congressional candidate Mai Vang for appearing on controversial political commentator Hasan Piker's streaming program.

Singh-Allen was not alone. Assemblymember Stephanie Nguyen and Sacramento City Councilmember Lisa Kaplan were among the elected officials who joined the chorus of condemnation.

Of course, Vang's supporters were not about to let those criticisms go unanswered. One supporter, Megan Sapigao, delivered a particularly pointed rebuke of Singh-Allen.

Sapigao dug up a Facebook post in which Singh-Allen congratulated New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani following his election victory last November.

Singh-Allen praised Mamdani's victory as a mandate for a "clear agenda for working families." The proclamation by Singh-Allen is more consistent with Vang's campaign messaging than Matsui's which is more of "I have seniority."

The mayor also took a swipe at the Cuomo family political dynasty, writing, "Time to send Cuomo packing since he said he would move to Florida if Mamdani won."

There was, however, one inconvenient detail.

Mamdani appeared on Piker's streaming program in April 2025, months before winning the mayoral election.

Sapigao questioned why Singh-Allen would condemn Vang for appearing on Piker's program while publicly celebrating another politician who had done the same thing.

In her rebuke, Sapigao wrote:

And for my angry, “pick-me” mayor, I wonder if she’ll rescind her support for Mayor Mamdani who went on Hasan Piker’s show too? I wonder what she has to say for Abdul El-Sayed who weeks ago sat down with the grand wizard of women-hating douchebags, Jesse Watters of Fox News? By this logic, doesn’t that mean we should rescind our support for him too? Honestly, our county sheriff has more sexual harassment allegations against him than Hasan Piker, but she and Matsui don’t mind being endorsed by him.

What a joke.

Sapigao also questioned whether appearing on a controversial commentator's program should automatically be interpreted as endorsing that commentator's views.

And that raises an interesting question.

If appearing on Piker's program is sufficient grounds to condemn Vang, why wasn't it a problem when Singh-Allen congratulated Mamdani?

Naturally, congratulating a newly elected mayor does not mean endorsing every position he holds or every media personality with whom he has associated.

But isn't that precisely the argument Vang's supporters are making about her appearance on Piker's program?

Then there is the little matter of political dynasties.

Singh-Allen's criticism of the Cuomo family is especially interesting considering her support for Rep. Doris Matsui.

A Matsui, either Robert or Doris, has represented Sacramento in Washington, D.C., continuously since 1979. By the end of this year, that will be almost 48 years.

Apparently, political dynasties are all right if they're your dynasty!

As for Mamdani's appearance with Piker, that association became a line of attack by former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and former New York City Mayor Eric Adams during last year's mayoral campaign.

We all know how that election ended for Cuomo.

Of course, New York City voters and Sacramento-area voters are different electorates, and what failed as a political attack in one election could have a different reception in another.

Perhaps the Matsui campaign has research suggesting the Piker association resonates with Sacramento voters. Or maybe this is a case where they saying the definition of madness is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result applies.

But there is a broader lesson here about political surrogates and the dangers of selective outrage.

With just over three weeks remaining before voting ends, we will be watching with humorous anticipation as elected officials continue campaigning on behalf of their preferred candidates.

After all, in the age of social media, yesterday's enthusiastic congratulations can become today's uncomfortable questions.

And thanks to screenshots, political memories have become remarkably long.