The Name is Mamdani

On June 24, a political earthquake shook New York City—the likes of which we haven’t seen since the 2008 presidential campaign of Barack Obama. Through a meteoric 4-month rise, New York Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani won the Democratic primary for the New York City mayoral race. His campaign style was rather unorthodox: go all in on social media and target young people to support his campaign. It worked, as he is now the favorite to win the New York City mayoral race. His potential victory could cement a vision for change in the Democratic Party.

How Did We Get Here?

Mamdani was not well-known before the primary, having only been an assemblyman for roughly 3 years before he entered. However, he had a vision for change that appealed to young people. By building a major social media presence, Mamdani eventually became neck and neck in the race with his main opponent, former Governor Andrew Cuomo, for the mayoral position. 

Moreover, his debate performances stuck out with many voters, with his attack lines leaving Cuomo defenseless in much of the debate. Additionally, Mamdani stole the spotlight with one-liners, such as when Cuomo pronounced his name wrong, in which Mamdani immediately clapped back, remarking, “The name is Mamdani. M-A-M-D-A-N-I,” garnering huge applause from the audience. With this also came Mamdani’s aggressive social media strategies: walking around Manhattan, launching ZetroCards (a play on the MetroCard) to get people to canvass, meeting and greeting with voters, and launching ads in numerous different languages, such as Hindi, Urdu, Bengali, and Spanish.

Meanwhile, many of his opponents didn’t run the best of campaigns. For context, Mamdani’s main opponent was former Governor Andrew Cuomo. Cuomo’s return to politics has been shaky. He left the Governor’s Mansion in disgrace after there were credible accusations of him sexually harassing 13 women. He was lambasted for causing thousands of deaths in nursing homes during the COVID-19 pandemic. He had numerous different scandals in office, including cutting Medicaid and the MTA budget. Even YouTuber JSchlatt repeatedly called Cuomo out for killing his grandma, in a series of replies on X.

Cuomo could not effectively fend off these skeletons in his closet, yet Mamdani capitalized on them big time. Yet, despite having the momentum in the leadup to the election, he still trailed behind in the polls.

A Risky Vision For Change

Yet, Mamdani’s policies did not come without baggage. Many questioned his self-proclaimed “Democratic Socialist” label, and there have been stark budget concerns over his progressive-influenced policies, such as:

• Implementing rent freezes across NYC, which could prove to be helpful or detrimental to housing development

• A $30 minimum wage by 2030

• Government-owned popup grocery stores 

• Free buses across New York City

• A rise in the corporate tax rate to 11%

However, it is clear that Mamdani’s policy platform resonated with voters in a time when nearly 70,000 New Yorkers are homeless, and the affordability crisis only continues to get worse. Moreover, he has repeatedly defended his policies in debates, which also eased tensions. The high-risk, high-reward policy proposals presented a bold, yet somewhat risky vision for change, one that could pay off or turn out to be a blunder. Yet, New Yorkers still voted for this bold vision for change.

The Election Results

On June 24, the primary took place. Despite polling showing Cuomo slightly up; Mamdani was gaining momentum. Initial returns proved disastrous for Cuomo, and the results stayed virtually the same for the entire night. Mamdani is in 1st with 43% of the vote, then Cuomo with 37%, and Brad Lander with 11%. Borough results showed a huge shift towards Mamdani, exemplified by Staten Island, where Andrew Cuomo was expected to crack 60% of the vote, but only garnered 46%. It is imperative to note that the final results don’t come out until the following Tuesday, July 1st. Two factors will contribute to Mamdani’s guarantee of a victory.

• Mamdani’s main opponent, Andrew Cuomo, conceded the night of the primary in what was described as a surprise concession

• The Mamdani-Lander ranked choice voting alliance is almost certainly going to pull Mamdani to the finish line, as both have cross-endorsed, so most Lander voters likely transfer to Mamdani

This primary has been one for the ages, and it is highly likely Mamdani wins the general election, as vote splitting could hurt anti-Mamdani forces, such as Andrew Cuomo (who is running an independent campaign), and incumbent mayor Eric Adams. However, one thing is clear; Democratic primary voters chose a vision of bold, albeit risky change that represents a shift away from the old guard of Democratic politics and a new dawn in social media-propelled politics.

Extemp Analysis By: Rowan Seipp

AGD: There are enough Mamdani sound bits to play with here. My advice would be to pick a memorable moment from one of the debates and talk about that.

Background: You need to explain a couple of important things:

1. Who Mamdani is 

2. Who Cuomo is/his scandals

3. The implications of a progressive candidate

Question: What are the implications of Zohran Mamdani’s primary win in NYC?

Answer: A shift in democratic policy 

1. A resurgence in progressives 

2. A shift left in party policy 

3. A new wave anti-Trump programs 

Focus on the importance of the progressive movement in the Democratic Party and how that movement has been trampled on as of late. 

Read More:

• Benjamin Oreskes, New York Times

• Amber Phillips, Washington Post

• Joseph Ax and Maria Tsvetkova, Reuters

• Eric Bradner, CNN