In a landmark victory that reshapes New York City’s political landscape, Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani has been elected the city’s 111th mayor.
The 34-year-old State Assembly member defeated independent candidate and former Governor Andrew Cuomo to become the first Muslim, first South Asian, and youngest mayor in over a century.
The election saw unusually high engagement, with a turnout of more than 2 million New Yorkers, the largest attended for a mayoral race in over 50 years. Voters largely chose Mamdani for his sharp focus on affordability, promising rent freezes, free public buses, and a big tax hike on the city’s wealthiest. His victory is seen as a powerful mandate for the progressive wing of the Democratic Party.
Quotes, controversies, and the Trump threat
The contest was defined by the deep-seated controversies surrounding both candidates.
- Andrew Cuomo ran his comeback campaign shadowed by the sexual harassment allegations that forced his resignation as governor in 2021. Despite denying the claims, his past was a constant liability, taken full advantage of by his opponent’s sharp critique during the campaign. Mamdani was quoted as saying he was “proud” he didn’t have Cuomo’s “experience of corruption, scandal and disgrace”.
- Zohran Mamdani faced intense scrutiny over his left-wing politics and his strong pro-Palestinian stance. He was criticised for his comments on the phrase “globalise the intifada”, a term he later said he would discourage the use of. The controversy was amplified when President Donald Trump attacked Mamdani, calling him a “proven and self-professed JEW HATER” and a “communist“.
A rocky start with Washington
The immediate fight for Mayor-elect Mamdani will be managing the inevitable conflict with the federal government. President Trump explicitly threatened to withhold federal funds from New York City if the “communist” candidate won. Mamdani responded defiantly in his victory speech, declaring to Trump: “To get to any of us, you will have to get through all of us”.
Mamdani will officially take office on January 1, facing the dual task of implementing his ambitious progressive agenda while fighting for the federal resources America’s largest city depends on.
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