🔗 Share this article

New Yorkers will find out the identity of their new city leader this election day, in a contest that will determine who runs and protects the nation's most populous metropolis at a time when the former president has vowed to deploy military troops to the city.

In this context, New York has witnessed a mayoral election that has pitted two distinctly opposing Democratic figures against one another. The election has become an acrimonious face-off, laced with alleged racial bias and Islamophobia, but it is the political differences between the two main candidates that could have major implications for how the party fares in next year's midterm elections.

The Progressive Challenger

In the progressive corner is Zohran Mamdani, the young democratic socialist whose rapid ascent and grassroots campaign has brought global notice. On the establishment side is the former governor, the former New York governor now campaigning independently – and benefiting from the support of ultra-rich donors and big business.

With days to go, it is Mamdani, the one-time underdog who beat his opponent in the Democratic primary who is solidly positioned as the leading candidate. The candidate, who has campaigned on a platform of affordability and promised to freeze rent for about two million New Yorkers, has outpaced Cuomo by double-digits across all surveys taken in the fall, and it is very much the younger man's race to lose.

The Controversial Campaign

Yet, the former governor, who resigned as the state's leader in 2021 amid accusations of sexual harassment, has made it clear he will fight to the finish, and not necessarily in an fair fashion. He has criticized Mamdani's goals as unrealistic, and in recent days laughed as a broadcaster made anti-Muslim comments about the candidate, who is Muslim. Recently, the independent was strongly criticized as racist after posting an AI-generated ad that included a slew of racial caricatures and showed Mamdani freeing a group of criminals.

It's been a rather grubby end to an election that could be key to the direction that the party, struggling in its reaction to Trump's authoritarian grabs, takes in the coming years.

Broader Consequences

Should Mamdani wins convincingly, the party establishment who have refused to endorse his bid will be compelled to address a message that has resonated with Americans' frustration at economic disparity, soaring price rises and the political elite. It would be difficult for the Senate leader and Hakeem Jeffries not to embrace at least some of the candidate's progressive proposals about economic justice, given the newcomer has created an enthusiasm within the party perhaps not seen since Bernie Sanders campaigned for the White House eight years ago.

However, should Cuomo, who had been expected to sail to victory in the Democratic primary, achieve a remarkable riches-to-rags-to-riches win, it could cement national Democrats' existing approach of cautious, uninspiring opposition – a strategy that has angered grassroots members. A NYC rejection of the progressive's optimistic platform could convince party leaders that the wisest course is to remain in the political center – even as surveys show the present version of the Democratic party is widely disliked across the country.

Voter Enthusiasm

Voters in New York appear to favor the Mamdani vision. Polls show that Mamdani supporters are far more enthusiastic about their choice than his opponent's supporters, something that has been apparent during the race. The candidate's snappy videos on social media, his hopeful outlook for the city and his willingness to actually venture out and meet people in the metropolis has attracted an force of more than 50,000 volunteers, many of them youth or new participants.

Personal Attacks

Yet, the former governor, 67, isn't giving up. And with the risks against him, the ex-leader has turned to negative campaigning in recent weeks.

After spending months throwing basically everything at Mamdani to see what might stick, Cuomo has narrowed his focus on attacking Mamdani personally. He has called his rival, who was born in Uganda to Indian parents, an “extremist”, and appeared on Fox Business for an discussion with a rightwing host, where the candidate claimed the city “will not survive” his opponent as mayor. It reached a nadir last week, when the former governor chuckled and said “that’s another problem” after a broadcaster said the candidate would “cheer” another 9/11-style incident.

Political Landscape

The line of attack mirrors much of what the former president, who has deployed the national guard to Washington DC and warned to take similar action to NYC, has said about Mamdani, and perhaps that shouldn’t come as a surprise. A set of billionaire New Yorkers, including some who donated to the Republican in the 2024 election, have invested heavily into trying to get Cuomo elected, as other powerful voices have urged the Republican candidate to drop out from the contest.

Political Histories

As far as the his team, and his wealthy backers, are concerned, it should never have come to this. When Mamdani, one of one hundred fifty New York state assembly members, launched his mayoral bid in October 2024, few had known him, and in reality, barely anyone even noticed.

The former governor, by contrast, eased his way into the race in this year and became the immediate frontrunner. He was the political heavyweight who seemingly held all the advantages. The classic political insider, he had wed a Kennedy and served in a Democratic presidency. He assumed office as New York governor in over a decade ago, 17 years after his parent, Mario Cuomo, left office from the identical role.

Mamdani, who was elected to the New York state assembly in recently, does not have the same political heritage. But his commitment to providing free buses and affordable child services – along with the rent control promise – present a brighter outlook of the city's direction than Cuomo’s dire warnings about “mayhem” and unfettered crime, and his promise to hire more police officers.

Campaign Controversies

Still, Mamdani has faced some challenges in recent days, after footage emerged suggesting him suggesting the New York police department and the IDF were intertwined.

“We have to make clear that when the pressure of the NYPD is on your throat, it’s been influenced by the Israeli military,” the candidate said in the clip, recorded at a DSA gathering in recent years. Mamdani, a vocal opponent of Israel who has said the nation is engaging in atrocities in the Palestinian territory, indicated he was questioning cooperative programs between the NYPD and IDF.

Powerful Moment

As the race closes, Mamdani seems to have gained empathy and backing, however, for his reaction to Cuomo’s increasing rhetoric.

Mamdani responded to Cuomo’s terrorism comments in an emotional video. In it, the candidate remembered how, when he first campaigned for state assembly, a family member advised to him that he did not have to disclose about his religion. It was a realization, Mamdani said, that many local Muslims had been told “again and again”: “That security could only be found in the margins of our city. That it is in those hidden spaces alone where followers of Islam could embrace their full identities, and that if we were to emerge from those seclusion, then it is in those shadows that we must set aside our faith.”

Addressing the actions of his opponents, who has alleged Mamd