New York mayoral election: a protest against right-wing populism

In the United States, 34-year-old Zohran Mamdani will become the new 111th mayor of New York City, which is home to 8.5 million people and about the same number of people who come there every day - millions from the suburbs to work, millions more as tourists. For the first time since 1969, about 2 million people took part in the vote, and in 2021, the turnout was just under 1.15 million. The winner of the election race is a Muslim, a native of Uganda, a socialist and a supporter of Palestinian independence. According to the results of the vote held on November 4, Mamdani won about 50% of the vote, Andrew Cuomo, another candidate from the Democratic Party, 41%, and the third candidate, populist Republican Curtis Plum, 7%. The future mayor will take office on January 1, 2026.

Experts noted that Mamdani became the leader of the race back in the summer, winning the Democratic Party primary and beating former New York State Governor and political heavyweight Cuomo, who has already congratulated Mamdani on his victory. The third candidate, Curtis Plum, also conceded defeat.

A tumultuous election race

It should be noted that at the beginning of this year, Mamdani's recognition was estimated at 1%, and even his own team estimated his chances of winning at 3%.

Now, he will become the youngest mayor of New York in more than a century, the first mayor of a city with South Asian roots, the first Muslim mayor, and perhaps the most popular democratic socialist in the country," the New York Times writes.

According to the newspaper, influential individuals and public figures accustomed to running New York City saw Mr. Mamdani's ascension as something closer to a hostile takeover - one that many would do anything to block.

Mr. Cuomo's top aide immediately called labor unions and Democratic Party officials, urging them to withhold their support. Longtime real estate friends soon began offering US President Donald Trump the possibility of White House intervention.

And Bill Ackman, a billionaire financier, warned X that "hundreds of millions of dollars" would be available to crack down on the young troublemaker in November and "save our city." Republicans have called Mamdani a communist and a jihadist. Donald Trump, billionaire Elon Musk, and other high-ranking Republicans have called for a vote against him. It got to the point that on the eve of the election, Trump called for voting not for his fellow party member Plum, but for a member of the Democratic Party, Cuomo, who lost the primary to Mamdani in the summer. Trump called the winner of the race a communist and threatened to cut off federal funding to New York City if he won.

Mamdani's leadership has also caused a crisis in the US Democratic Party and questions about what policies the party will promote in the future. The richest people in New York threatened to leave the city if Mamdani won, and the mayoral campaign itself was characterized by mutual accusations of anti-Semitism, Islamophobia, and radicalism.

But none of this happened, and Mamdani won.

A rally after the election. PHOTO: Getti Images

Why Mamdani won the election

New York Times journalists are convinced that the victory was achieved thanks to an incredible behind-the-scenes campaign that lasted during the race. In meetings with Midtown leaders and during intimate phone calls, the left-wing populist, who built his brand on taxing the rich, won over, charmed, and delicately "disarmed" some of the most powerful people in America.

The Democratic establishment has been scared off by Mamdani's socialist attitude and his direct statements in support of Palestinian independence, Axios wrote. "The Democratic Party is trying to compete for a moderate electorate in small towns that is not used to such harsh rhetoric as Mamdani. And Democrats themselves often speak from pro-market and pro-Israel positions.

But after the primary, Mamdani somewhat reduced the intensity of his campaign. He met with business representatives and talked about the possibility of a "partnership" between them and the future city government. He also said that he did not advise pro-Palestinian activists to use the slogan "Globalize the Intifada," although he refused to condemn the phrase.

This is not the first time he has changed his position. While after the Black Lives Matter protests in 2020, Mamdani called for a reduction in police funding, he now proposed the creation of a "Department of Public Safety" and agreed not to change the head of the city police, although he had previously intended to do so.

In general, Mamdani's campaign used bright colors, faithful social media videos, and a lot of humor. In one video, he made election promises in the style of Hollywood musicals, in another he portrayed a character from the reality TV show "The Bachelor" giving a rose to New York City, and in the third he jumped into the ocean to announce a rent freeze. Mamdani walked around the city campaigning on foot, talking to people on the streets, knocking on their doors, and going down to the subway.

Mamdani's victory speech. PHOTO: Reuters

What a lot of election promises. Many of them were very populist. And if Donald Trump, with his promises to reduce food prices in supermarkets and gasoline prices at gas stations on the first day of his administration, is called a "right-wing populist," Mamdani, with his promises of free city buses in New York, free kindergartens, cheap housing, fixed rents, and stores selling food at reduced prices, is as populist as Trump, only with a left-wing slant.

"Mamdani puts forward simple solutions to everyday problems, and not all of them can be agreed upon, but these proposals are understandable to voters. In addition, he encourages young people to take an interest in politics. And the Democratic Party, following his lead, should stand up for the needs of 90% of the population - affordable housing, food, and childcare," says former U.S. Secretary of Labor Robert Reich.

But there are opinions that if the Democrats follow Reich's advice, they will become populists as a political force. But it's hardly worth talking about the Democratic Party going populist now. There are now victories of moderate and traditional centrist Democrats in the elections of governors of Virginia and New Jersey.

Democratic victories in the elections <span><span><span><span><span>are a</span></span></span></span></span> disappointment in Donald Trump

Some analysts believe that the victory of the left-wing populist Mamdani as mayor of the Big Apple - the New York City elections have become a kind of barometer of how Americans are reacting to the tumultuous start of Trump's second presidential term.

The leftward lurch in the liberal city of New York is a response to last year's sharp rightward lurch of half the country and the drift that followed toward the creation of a right-wing authoritarian government in the country. But such a tilt was entirely expected.

Mamdani owes his rise to the very large dissatisfaction of the majority of New Yorkers with Trump and his policies, a desire on a subconscious level to show the 47th President of the United States: "oh, you do?" - well, then get a response!

No wonder Mamdani referred to this "response" during a rally held the night after the election.

"Donald Trump, because I know you're watching, I have four words for you: turn up the volume," the election winner said (quoted by CBS News), alluding to the number of his supporters at the rally.

Supporters of Mamdani. PHOTO: Reuters

In his victory speech, the 34-year-old politician focused on his campaign promises and his message of hope.

"In a time of political darkness, New York will be a light," he said.

The future mayor of New York made it clear that he considers his election victory a defeat for the US president, who urged the residents of the metropolis not to vote for Mamdani and promised to cut federal funding for New York to a minimum if he wins. He also said that if any city in the United States can show the country how to defeat Trump, it is New York, "the city that gave birth to him."

But it was not only New York that "stood up to Trump." In fact, Democrats have won several important victories.

For example, Democratic candidate Mickey Sherrill won the gubernatorial election in New Jersey, beating Trump ally Jack Cittarelli. In Virginia, a Democratic woman, Abigail Spanberger, a former congresswoman and CIA officer, also won the gubernatorial election. She became the first woman to lead this state.

Another successful campaign for the Democrats took place in California, where voters approved a change in electoral districts that favored the party's candidates.

These are important victories for the Democratic Party, especially in Virginia, where voters tend to favor one party or the other. All three candidates from this party emphasized economic issues in their campaigns, but Spanberger and Sherrill represent the moderate wing of the party, and Mamdani represents its potential future new generation.

How the US and the world reacted to Mamdani's victory

Former President and Democrat Barack Obama said that after the announcement of the results in New York, "the future looks a little brighter," although "there is still a lot of work to be done."

House Democratic Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, who had not supported Mamdani until recently, called the election results a verdict on the cost of living.

"Donald Trump and the Republicans have not done a damn thing to reduce the high cost of living. And the American working class knows it," he wrote on social media.

Independent left-wing Senator Bernie Sanders described Mamdani's victory in New York as "one of the greatest political upheavals in modern American history."

The US President, who called on New Yorkers to vote for another Democratic candidate to prevent Mamdani's victory, wrote on social media that he believed the Democrats won the election because"Trump was not on the ballot."

House Speaker Mike Johnson, a Republican, called Mamdani "a true extremist and Marxist."

"His election cements the transformation of the Democratic Party into a radical socialist party that favors strong government," he wrote.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan congratulated Mamdani, writing on social media: "The people of New York faced a clear choice - between hope and fear - and as we saw in London, hope won out. Huge congratulations to Save Mamdani on his historic campaign." Like Mamdani, Khan became the first Muslim mayor in his city's history in 2016.

Israel's Minister of Diaspora Affairs and Combating Anti-Semitism Amichai Shikli called on Jews to leave New York City after Muslim Zohran Mamdani won the mayoral election. According to him, the city will be led by a "Hamas supporter."

Will the Democrats' tactics change after Mamdani's victory?

During the election campaign, Mamdani demonstrated an exceptional ability to focus on key economic issues that are a priority for the working class - those voters who have recently drifted away from the Democratic Party. At the same time, he did not abandon the cultural principles of the left wing.

"We won because the people of New York allowed themselves to hope that the impossible could be possible," he told his supporters after most of the protocols were counted.

After that, many began to say that leaders like Mamdani were the possible future of the Democratic Party.

But the New York City mayoral election was not the only race that took place in the United States on November 4. As mentioned above, New Jersey and Virginia also elected governors, and in both cases, the Democrats won by a more comfortable margin of victory. It should be noted that, unlike Mamdani, Democrats Mickey Sherrill and Abigail Spanberger ran centrist and more moderate campaigns that were supported by the party establishment. However, they also focused their attention on the issues of affordability and living costs. Perhaps this is what made it possible to say that the Democrats are also turning to populism. By the way, populism also has its supporters in Europe (Czech Republic, Ireland, etc.).

Since both the left and the center of the Democratic Party won on this day, it may be difficult to draw unambiguous conclusions about which policies and candidates should ensure the success of the Democrats in the future. However, Mamdani himself is confident that the party has enough room for a wide variety of views.

Next year, this position will be put to the test when Democrats across the country head to the polls to elect their candidates for Congress in the midterm elections. Tensions will undoubtedly rise, and traditional fault lines may re-emerge.

As the United States' main current competitor, China, is gaining more and more weight in the world, both Democrats and Republicans need to think not only about how to win over the electorate, but also about how to maintain their country's global leadership.

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