Making sense of Zohran Mamdani’s political shockwave
Readings on what a radical change in the New York state of mind might mean for the future of the Democratic Party
Zohran Mamdani’s victory in New York City’s electoral primary came as a shock for Democrats and the Democratic Party, utterly upending assumptions about the electability of progressive candidates. Only days ago, the 33-year-old New York State Assemblyman and socialist was seen as a longshot, or even unelectable by newspaper editorial boards and establishment Democrats, despite a few tightening polls (that turned out to have gotten the model right).
Mamdani — clearly a generational political talent — ran a campaign that made its mark with viral moments, but more importantly he also made an all-out, IRL, on-the-ground organizing effort that animated the base, plugged into the real concerns of a changing electorate, and harnessed the power of emotion and a sense that we can have nice things. And that overcame spending, appeals from party veterans, TV advertising, tacking to the middle, and all the rest of the traditional Democratic campaign approaches that have left voters cold in the past, and did so in this election. And that suggests that all Democratic candidates could stand to rethink their strategy, regardless of where they stand ideologically.
What does Mamdani’s primary victory mean for New York City and the future of the Democratic Party? No one can say yet, and it’s even possible that Andrew Cuomo will run as a strong independent in the fall, setting up an unexpectedly competitive general election, so even the local impact isn’t yet known — but it is a sign of a very different future for Democratic politics.
Below, we’ve collected some of the smartest takes on the election so far, so read on for some of the sharp questions, thoughts, and opinions that this upheaval of a victory has generated as it sweeps through American politics.
Are we seeing the Democratic future?
“I do think it’s worth separating out the style of politics from the policy,” co-host Jon Favreau said. “Because we could have a whole debate about what policy positions can win... but if there’s a center-left candidate who campaigns like Mamdani, that person could be president.” [The Lever]
A lesson for an anti-institutional age?
A voter wants to look up, not down. In terms of brute politics, he made all the right moves, stressing economics and dodging the culture war. He met voters where they were, and his canvassers, forty thousand in number, met them on the doors. He had a message and stuck to it. The more than four hundred thousand Democrats who voted for Mamdani voted, in fact, for Mamdani, and not merely against Cuomo. It was an affirmative choice, a thrilling leap into the unknown. Cuomo, meanwhile, staggered forward like the dazed, entitled goliath he was, and he toppled over mighty quick. His obituary is written, and it won’t be revised. As Mamdani earned his fate, Cuomo earned his. Sometimes, justice does get served. [Political Currents with Ross Barkan]
Did Mamdani “beat” the polls?
Pollsters know that most of the time it’s very hard to get young people to answer a poll and you often have to weight them up. There was so much enthusiasm from young voters in our raw data that we found 37% of likely voters were under 45 unweighted. Our poll correctly found a much different electorate than usually votes in primary elections. When all the final turnout numbers come in, it will probably turn out we should have projected an even younger electorate. [Public Policy Polling]
A model for campaigns in an age of fight?
Mamdani’s victory represents a seismic and historic shift for the Democratic Party and a bellwether for the nation. The majority is donewith establishment politics and their manicured puppets who receive corporate talking points. The people value sincerity and authenticity above age and experience. They want passionate fighters who have convictions and are willing to articulate them in the face of racist double standards and ridiculous questions about Israel and terrorism that are only asked of people of color and Muslims. [The Left Hook]
Who was the real labor candidate?
The working class is done with business as usual. We were proud to be the first union to endorse Zohran because it’s time for a political movement that puts the working class first. Our members spoke out and turned out in a big way — and we’re just getting started. Congratulations to Region 9A Director Brandon Mancilla on an exceptional field operation. Congratulations to Zohran for building a movement, and congratulations to the working-class New Yorkers for showing the world that when we unite and stand up nobody can stand in our way! [Shawn Fain/United Auto Workers]
No fight but the fight for all
What Mamdani understood — and what national Democrats seem incapable of grasping — is that you don't have to choose between economic populism and protecting vulnerable people. In fact, they're the same fight.
When Mamdani talked about trans rights, he didn't treat them as some boutique cultural issue. He wove them into his broader message about affordability and economic justice. "The cost of living crisis confronting working class people across the city hits the LGBTQIA+ community particularly hard," he said, noting higher rates of unemployment and homelessness. His proposed Office of LGBTQIA+ Affairs wasn't about pronouns — it was about housing, employment, and healthcare. [The Present Age]
Is the left actually ascendant?
Until this very morning I would have said I was a liberal. Tonight I am a leftist. [Magic + Loss]
Do people just want a government that does things?
But it was not just Mamdani that gives us data that supports this. Brad Lander—who is currently NYC’s elected Comptroller---came in third place with nearly 12% of the vote. He also ran a campaign that offered people programs that would change their lives including “free, high-quality afterschool programming for K through 8th graders.” In addition, he vowed to expand NYC’s Pre-K program to include even younger children.
Together Mamdani and Lander received 55% of the vote compared to the more centrist Cuomo’s 36%. The message here is clear. Democrats want to be inspired—not told you will fight for the status quo that benefits the wealthy and has screwed over so many of us. [The Dean’s Report]
Did kitchen table issues win the day (and what does that mean for conservatives)?
Momentum and vibes weren’t all that Mamdani had. He also had a message. As outlandish as his plans may be, he talked about making New York City more affordable. Cuomo mostly talked about President Donald Trump. [The Free Press]
A new angle for Republican attacks?
His views on Israel are likely to force some national Democrats into an uncomfortable position, said David Axelrod, a native New Yorker and Mr. Obama’s chief strategist. But he said that Mr. Mamdani’s relentless focus on economic affordability resonated widely and could be a playbook for the party’s success as well.
“There is no doubt that Trump and Republicans will try and seize on him as a kind of exemplar of what the Democratic Party stands for,” Mr. Axelrod said. “The thing is, he seems both principled and agile and deft enough to confront those sort of conventional plays.” [The New York Times]
Can the center hold?
So Mamdani’s victory needn’t be some kind of death knell for a winning Democratic party coalition in 2026 or 2028. It needn’t be a death knell for a centrist party in the tradition—now that you mention it!—of Truman and Kennedy. It should be a death knell for an ossified Democratic establishment that needs to be put out of its misery. And it should be a wake up call for non-socialist Democrats to show some of the audacity and the ability of Mamdani. [The Bulwark]
Billionaire exit?
How does the business community feel about Mamdani?
Terrified.
Care to elaborate? How much of that is him as a person versus fearmongering that is getting whipped up by his opponents?
I don't think you can answer that question, because not very many business leaders have sat down with him. Those that have see him as a bright young man, but one who proclaims an ideology that they're concerned about and at the heart of that is that local government somehow has the resources to solve all problems. For those of us who have been around for a while, we recognize that the city tax base is not deep or broad enough to solve all problems. We need a combination of public and private investments. We have to encourage private investment, which is what the partnership has been dedicated to. And we need federal support, and to get that, we have to be a united city, not one that divides us, not one that splits us up. [City & State New York]
A strong victory for a strong candidate, but can a weak Democratic Party change enough to build on it?
Mamdani’s victory is a sign that the Democratic Party establishment is in trouble, and the party is ready for a wider revolt. The next move of progressive Democrats is to start running insurgent candidates in primaries to harness the anger of the moment. One can easily imagine noxious figures like Ritchie Torres, Hakeem Jeffries, and Chuck Schumer being targeted for primary challenges. Mamdani has laid out the strategy. The left should now follow his example. [The Nation]
Is New York City ready for social democracy, let alone socialism?
Despite the fever-dreams and agonized fearmongering of right-wing Democrats, this is hardly a communist revolution. If Mamdani hopes to pass even a fraction of the modest items on his agenda — like city-owned grocery stores and baby boxes, two policies developed by People’s Policy Project founder Matt Bruenig — his biggest fights are still ahead of him, and he will require ongoing mass support from the NYC working class to get there. [The People’s Line]
Should we pause before we stan for heroes?
Hope—there’s that word again. We should all probably temper our hope. Electoral politics are not revolutionary politics. The American system is designed to either destroy people like Mamdani or to absorb and neuter them. He first has to win in November—no certain feat. And if he does, the task of governing New York City will be brutal. His agenda will be fought viciously at every turn. He will be presiding over the NYPD, an emblem of municipal fascism that knows how to protect its supremacy. He will face unceasing opposition from the ruling class. He will make bad decisions and grim compromises.
None of that will be fun, and we will all have to put our current standom aside and hold Mamdani to account when he inevitably stumbles. Things will get ugly. [Discourse Blog]
The task ahead
He will need to work tirelessly not only on fulfilling his campaign promises but on issues that matter to the middle class, like K-12 education and cleanliness. Under austerity mayor Adams, we have had to step nimbly over human excrement on the stairs as we exit subway stations. Under a Mayor Mamdani, that same pile of excrement could easily become a symbol of why socialism doesn’t work. He needs to demonstrate that socialism — much more so than neoliberalism — can keep the shit off the steps. [Jacobin]
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Many in the boomer generation are as fed up with the legacy Democratic Party as younger voters are.
Democrats used to understand what it means to stand up for a strong working class and growing middle class - until monied interests began their strategic takeover of legislatures, media, the courts and politicians in the mid-1970s.
Since then, as a result of political policy choices and court decisions, the transfer of wealth to the ultra rich has been staggering, and the middle and working classes have seen their economic and future sense of security disappear.
Trump used popular discontent to gain power but won’t deliver on promises to those who no longer have anything to offer him. On the contrary, billionaires who hate laws that constrain them and paying any taxes are the only constituents he and MAGA Republicans serve.
It’s always, always the economy, stupid. Legacy Democrats didn’t/don’t seem to grasp that GDP and stock prices don’t mean daily living isn’t a battle for fading hopes of anything approaching the American dream. Big investors, including private equity and foreigners, dominate access to housing, healthcare, higher education and other basic necessities.
Democratic New York voters are saying what the DNC doesn’t want to hear: no more! Represent the majority of us who live with soaring prices and shrinking opportunities, or move over for those who will.
An array of different opinions —- but what is universal in all the content is that Momdani’s victory was truly revolutionary. An upset. That alone is a wonderful pedagogical event— because it forces everyone to ask Why? How? It defies conventional wisdom. And that is good.
Nothing is guaranteed— our future, Momdani’s future, NYC’s future. But I say—- let’s do everything possible to help Momdani’s succeed— not only in Nov ‘25, but as the new leader for NYC.