Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani named former EMS chief Lillian Bonsignore as the FDNY’s next commissioner on Tuesday.

Bonsignore, a 31-year member of the FDNY who retired in 2022, will be just the second woman to to take the reins for New York’s Bravest in the department’s history.

“I want Lillian’s leadership to be felt, not only as we continue to lower response times and save lives, but as we continue to ensure that FDNY is exactly who New Yorkers turn to in their times of need,” Mandani said at a news conference announcing the appointment at Bayside Historical Society.

“She is the kind of leader I am so proud to have in my administration, and possesses the kind of excellence that stands out even in New York City, where she was born and raised,” he said. “I am grateful to the Bronx’s own Lillian, for returning to FDNY, and I look forward to watching her thrive in the role.”

Bonsignore replaces Robert Tucker, who turned in his resignation last month, one day after Mamdani soundly defeated former Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the mayoral race.

Tucker, who is Jewish, said he refused to serve under the former state assemblyman from Queens, a Muslim whose Democratic socialist agenda has rattled some in the city.

Bonsignore’s appointment comes as Mayor Eric Adams made a separate, puzzling announcement naming his own new fire commissioner to run out the final days of his tenure at City Hall.

Mark Guerra, who had been serving as interim commish, was officially named to the post at another press conference on Tuesday. 

“As we finish up these last few days here in this administration, one would ask why are we making an appointment today of the FDNY, the new commissioner, to come in,” Adams told reporters.

“Because activities that take place in the police department and all of our public safety apparatus — they don’t go on holiday,” the mayor said. “They don’t stop. They don’t pause.”

Bonsignore served as chief of EMS operations from 2019 to 2022, and was the highest-ranking officer and the highest-ranking woman in the EMS — the first to ever achieve a four-star rank.

Since her retirement, she has been a senior adviser at Cambridge Consulting Group.

“The impact of the fire department on the lives of New Yorkers cannot be overstated,” Bonsignore said Tuesday. “We are more than first responders. We are an integral part of the very fabric of the city, saving lives, providing hope and ensuring resilience every single day. 

“I am committed to working closely with fellow city leaders, department heads and community stakeholders to forge partnerships that promote safety, efficiency and the well-being of New Yorkers,” she said. “Equally important, I recognize the vital role the labor unions play in our department’s success.”

Some firefighters questioned the move to hand the keys to the department over to Bonsignore — similar to the grumbling in the ranks that ultimately forced Laura Kavanagh, the FDNY’s first woman commissioner, to resign last year after less than three years on the job.

“It’s stupid,” one smoke eater said. “EMTs have no idea what firemen do. They have no idea how to fight a fire.”

However, the city firefighters’ union praised both Guerra and Bonsignore.

In a statement Tuesday, FDNY Uniformed Firefighters Association President Andrew Ansbro called Guerra “a leader who has earned the respect of the rank and file through decades of service.”

Ansbro also heralded Bonsignore for her “unmatched experience in emergency medical services and crisis management” during the 9/11 terror attacks and during the COVID pandemic.

Additional reporting by Larry Celona