The One Thing Karoline Leavitt Has in Common with New York’s First Lady Rama Duwaji Left Fans Mouths on the Floor
Donald Trump’s White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt has the internet in a frenzy after users made a surprising discovery involving New York City’s new mayor and his wife, Rama Duwaji.
Duwaji is married to Zohran Mamdani, a Muslim, American-Indian progressive Democrat who just won the mayoral election in the Big Apple on November 4.
The revelation quickly sent social media into detective mode, with users drawing unexpected comparisons between the two young women based on a simple coincidence that has turned into a digital Rorschach test — revealing more about the women and their spouses.
A video circulating on TikTok shows a white girl who looks shocked with the text, “Just found out Caroline Leavitt and Rama Duwaji (ZOHRAN Mamdani’s wife) are BOTH 28,” written over it. An image of Leavitt and Rama was placed in opposite corners of the clip.
The caption read, “Two different women doing two very different things for the state of democracy!”
@less.is.moreee Two different women doing two very different things for the state of democracy! #zohranmamdani #caroline #girl ♬ emma uncomfortable laugh – cuppy💀
Fans on the site made the same discovery, and some were equally confused after viewing photos of Leavitt and Duwaji.
“Stop! One looks 23 and one looks 42,” one stated, while another asked, “Why does Rama look sooo much younger and Karoline looks like she’s 50?”
A third person agreed, “Rama looks her age. Karoline just looks way older.” Still in disbelief, one user claimed, “KKKaroline Leavitt is 55 and you cannot convince me otherwise.”
Social media users even went as far as comparing both women’s spouses, as another wrote, “Well their husbands aren’t the same age so…”
Zohran Mamdani and his wife Rama Duwaji pic.twitter.com/Hf6N7Mm3NC
— Me & Who? (@tagyourwho) November 5, 2025
Duwaji turned 28 this summer in June, and her husband Mamdani turned 34 months later last October. Before his rise to political prominence, the two reportedly met on the Hinge dating app while working on community-based initiatives in New York, where their shared passion for activism and social justice quickly drew them together.
At the time, Mamdani was a grassroots organizer focused on housing and economic issues, while Duwaji, a Syrian-American illustrator and writer, used her art to explore cultural identity and political themes. Not much is shared about their marriage online.
Rama Duwaji and Karoline Leavitt are both 28 years old pic.twitter.com/FjcE01lqBe
— gabe 🔻 (@brokinrecord) November 6, 2025
But Leavitt can’t say the same as she is constantly dragged on social media for looking close to her husband’s age. To celebrate her 28th birthday, she shared new family photos featuring her and 60-year-old husband, Nicholas Riccio, and their 1-year-old son, Nicholas Riccio.
Leavitt rarely shares photos of her family due to the hateful messages she receives regarding their 23-year age gap relationship.
Their son, Nicholas Riccio, was born in July 2024, and the couple tied the knot a few months later in January 2025—just days before Donald Trump was sworn in as the 47th president on January 20.
Photos of the couple, including from the White House’s recent Halloween celebration, often leave Instagram users stunned, with many struggling to believe Leavitt’s real age. “This has to be a typo,” one person commented, while another added, “She looks 48 — wow.” The comment section quickly turned into a guessing game, with users debating whether the lighting, filters, or stress of politics was to blame.
Riccio wasn’t new to politics when he met Leavitt — he was already a wealthy real estate developer with deep ties to conservative circles and a reputation for backing Republican causes. His rise wasn’t easy; once homeless at 18, he lived in his car while attending Plymouth State University and often credits his mother for inspiring his real estate ambitions. By 2019, his loyalty to the MAGA movement was undeniable when he hosted a Women for Trump event across two of his Hampton Beach properties, turning his businesses into campaign hubs for Trump’s reelection.
Whether it’s fair or not, the internet seems fascinated by how two women the same age can represent such wildly different versions of 28.
For some, the viral comparison became a reflection of lifestyle, privilege, and pressure — with Duwaji seen as embodying a softer, more grounded image, while Leavitt’s stiff and polished, political persona appears to carry the weight of constant scrutiny.
