Zohran Mamdani was elected mayor of New York City on Tuesday, capping a stunning run for the 34-year-old state lawmaker, who was set to become the city’s most liberal mayor in generations.
In a victory for the Democratic Party’s progressive wing, Mamdani defeated former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Republican Curtis Sliwa. Mamdani must now navigate the unending demands of America’s biggest city and deliver on ambitious — sceptics say unrealistic—campaign promises.
With the victory, the democratic socialist will etch his place in history as the city’s first Muslim mayor, the first of South Asian heritage, and the first born in Africa. He will also become the city’s youngest mayor in more than a century when he takes office on Jan. 1.
Gov. Kathy Hochul said on X that she looked forward to working with Mamdani “to make our city more affordable and livable” and congratulated him on winning “one of the city’s highest-turnout elections on record.”
More than 2 million New Yorkers cast ballots in the contest, the largest turnout in a mayoral race in more than 50 years, according to the city’s Board of Elections.
New York City is Trump’s hometown, but he remains widely unpopular in the Democratic stronghold. His frequent comments and social media posts warning that the nation’s largest city would slip into ruin if Democrat Zohran Mamdani, a democratic socialist, was elected mayor may have narrowed the race some, but Trump’s late endorsement of independent former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who stepped down following a scandal four years ago, may have backfired.
Mamdani’s unlikely rise gives credence to Democrats who have urged the party to embrace more progressive, left-wing candidates instead of rallying behind centrists in hopes of winning back swing voters who have abandoned the party.
Mamdani’s win stuns favourite Cuomo
Mamdani began his campaign as a relatively obscure state lawmaker, little known even within New York City.
Going into the Democratic primary, Cuomo was the presumed favorite, with near-universal name recognition and deep political connections. Cuomo’s chances were buoyed further when incumbent Mayor Eric Adams bowed out of the primary while dealing with the fallout of his now-dismissed federal corruption case.
But as the race progressed, Mamdani’s natural charm, catchy social media videos and populist economic platform energised voters in the notoriously expensive city. He also began drawing outside attention as his name ID grew.
Ballots were cast in about half of US states
Voters cast ballots in about half of the states, including two competitive governor’s races: The governor’s races took on an outsize role in a year when Trump has battled with governors and mayors as he’s deployed National Guard troops and immigration agents across cities and states.
Voters in races across the country backed Democrats, including contests for governor in New Jersey and Virginia, rejecting President Donald Trump’s late and lightweight push for his preferred candidates.
In Virginia, where there’s a concentration of federal workers impacted by the government shutdown and Trump’s sweeping layoffs of the federal workforce, voters flipped control of the governor’s mansion and elected Democrat Abigail Spanberger as the state’s first female to lead the state. The former congresswoman defeated Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears.
In New Jersey, where Trump endorsed the Republican candidate Jack Ciattarelli and held several tele-rallies on his behalf, voters instead chose to keep Democrats in power and elected Congresswoman Mikie Sherill.
Though the candidates and local issues all played a role in the results, voter attitudes about the president and his agenda were central to their choices and offered the first clear review from voters of Trump’s agenda just nine months after he returned to power.
Top Democrats celebrated the results as a major victory over Trump. The president, meanwhile, was quick to respond to the results on Tuesday night with a defensive social media post after the results came.
Citing pollsters, Trump said that “TRUMP WASN’T ON THE BALLOT,” and the federal government shutdown “WERE THE TWO REASONS THAT REPUBLICANS LOST ELECTIONS TONIGHT.”