In one of the biggest races in recent American politics, Democratic Party nominee Zohran Mamdani won the New York City mayoral election with roughly 50.4 percent of the city’s vote. The 34-year-old democratic socialist received just over a million votes, while Andrew Cuomo, the former state governor of New York who ran as an independent, finished second with about 850 thousand votes.
The election had been highly anticipated for several months. Current mayor Eric Adams, a former police officer, was investigated by the FBI in late 2024 for corruption and bribery, although Adams had denied these accusations, the charges have since been dropped. Adams ran in the Democratic primary, but he withdrew to run as an independent, eventually ending his campaign a little over a month before the election.
In the Democratic primary, Cuomo appeared as the front runner early on. However, Mamdani, a state assemblyman, was able to attract attention to his campaign through social media and televised debates with other candidates. Mamdani also received endorsements from notable politicians such as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Bernie Sanders, two influential democratic figures. After three rounds of voting, Mamdani was declared the winner of the primary on July 1, with 56 percent of the vote compared to Cuomo’s 44 percent.
Although Cuomo lost the primary, he continued to run as an independent candidate. Curtis Sliwa ran as the Republican nominee, meaning New Yorkers had three major candidates to choose from. With Mamdani appearing as the front runner to win the election, debates emerged over whether Sliwa or Cuomo should drop out of the race to consolidate anti-Mamdani voters, but both candidates remained in the race up to the election.
Mamdani has been both praised and criticized for his policies as a democratic socialist. In his campaign, Mamdani ran on policies such as free city buses, a rent freeze in rent-stabilized housing and opening five city-run grocery stores. He also publicly advocated for a public safety reform and universal childcare, and he called for tax increases for corporations and individuals earning more than a million dollars per year.
Mamdani has been heavily criticized by several groups for his policies. President Trump has criticized Mamdani’s policies and has even called Mamdani a “communist” in multiple press conferences. During the election, Trump supported Cuomo and urged voters to vote against Mamdani. Other critics have attacked Mamdani’s lack of experience and his status as an immigrant. Mamdani has also faced push back for being Muslim and his stance on Israel. Mamdani has condemned Hamas but also has criticized Israel as an apartheid state. Mamdani also said that he would arrest Russian President Vladimir Putin or Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netenyahu if they came to New York City in accordance with the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) arrest warrants, even though the United States does not recognize the ICC.
Mamdani will take office on Jan. 1 of next year.
