Zohran Mamdani’s history-making win in the NYC mayoral race on Tuesday was greeted with elation, support — and some trepidation.
The trailblazing mayor-elect won praise from supporters who said his victory reflected his inspiring message of generational change and indefatigable campaign focus on affordability.
“Our assignment is to elect the fiercest fighters for the working class,” said Rep. Alexandria Ocasio. “In New York City, unquestionably, it is Zohran Mamdani… We have a future to fight for together.”
Gov. Hochul vowed to work closely with Mamdani after calling him on Election Night.
“I’m looking forward to working together to make our city more affordable and livable,” Hochul tweeted. “Congratulations to him and to every New Yorker who made their voice heard in one of the city’s highest-turnout elections on record.”
With near-record turnout, Mamdani, 34, defeated ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo in a repeat of his Democratic primary election win, with Republican Curtis Sliwa trailing far behind.
President Trump’s endorsement of Cuomo on the eve of Election Day may have hurt more than it helped with a city electorate that disapproves of the president’s performance by a 70% to 30% margin, according to exit polls.
Ex-Mayor Bill De Blasio praised Mamdani, who will become the Big Apple’s first Muslim mayor, for returning “with humility” to flip places that he lost in the primary, like Latino neighborhoods in the Bronx and Black communities in Brooklyn and Queens.
“What a beautiful day for New York,” the former mayor tweeted.
But critics sounded fearful about the impact a Mayor Mamdani would have on the city.
Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti-Defamation League, hit out at Mamdani’s “long, disturbing record on issues of deep concern to the Jewish community,” a reference to the mayor-elect’s fierce criticism of Israel and his refusal to disavow the “globalize the intifada” slogan.
“We will approach the next four years with resolve,” Greenblatt said in a statement. “We expect the mayor of the city with the largest Jewish population in the world to stand unequivocally against antisemitism in all its varied forms.”
Even in deep-blue New York City, Mamdani didn’t have an easy time unifying the Democratic Party leadership after he trounced Cuomo in the June primary.
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, the House Democratic leader, stayed on the fence for months, refusing to issue an endorsement of the party’s standard bearer, even after meeting with the nominee along with other lawmakers and faith leaders in Jeffries’ central Brooklyn district.
Jeffries finally backed Mamdani only hours before a self-proclaimed deadline of the beginning of early voting.
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer never endorsed Mamdani at all. Several other local Congress members also sat out the race.
The state’s other top Democrat, Gov. Hochul, did get behind Mamdani’s bid in the summer, perhaps looking to solidify her own support on the left ahead of her reelection battle next year.
A handful of suburban Democratic lawmakers, like Long Island’s Rep. Tom Suozzi and Rep. Lauren Gillen, even took the very unusual step of saying they wouldn’t vote for him.
Republicans were chomping at the bit to make Mamdani the face of the Democratic Party as next year’s crucial midterm congressional elections loom.
Even before voters headed to the polls, the National Republican Congressional Committee declared in a strategy memo that “the Democratic Party has been hijacked by the radical left.”
But not all Democrats think Mamdani will drag down the party from coast to coast.
Basil Smikle, a Columbia University professor and Democratic strategist, acknowledged that New York City has a very different electoral roadmap than elsewhere, but insisted the enthusiasm that Mamdani has brought to the table could play out elsewhere.
“What’s happening in New York is something that can be mapped across the country,” Smikle said. “If this new coalition can solidify itself, not just in New York City but in Virginia and New Jersey, I do think that’s a way forward to Democrats in ’26 and ’28.”
Ex-Rep. Steve Israel, a Democrat who once represented a Long Island swing district, said he disagrees with some of Mamdani’s policies, but is bullish about his impact on national politics.
“Here’s the good news: I like a Democratic Party who has a person like Zohran Mamdani, who’s a generational talent in voter turnout… and creating energy on the street,” Israel said.
