Our new book is The Comeback: The 2024 Elections and American Politics. It includes a discussion of state and local politics.
New York delivered a true political earthquake last night as Zohran Mamdani, the 33-year-old state assembly member and democratic socialist, stormed to victory in the city’s Democratic mayoral primary. Mamdani, a rank outsider before his social media-driven campaign gained traction with voters in the final weeks of the race, swept aside former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, earning more than 43 percent of the first-place votes. He should be confirmed as the Dem nominee next week, once ranked-choice votes have been counted.
Cuomo crushed: “Tonight was not our night,” said Cuomo, a once-towering figure of New York politics who had led in almost every opinion poll, massively outraised his rivals and racked up a string of high-profile endorsements ahead of Election Day. “I want to applaud [Mamdani] for a really smart, good and impactful campaign. Tonight is his night. He deserves it. He won.”
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Indeed: This campaign neatly mirrored the Democrats’ generational and political divide so apparent on the national stage, writes POLITICO’s Jeff Coltin. “A young, inexperienced socialist running on a hopeful message with the backing of Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, versus a 67-year-old, three-term former New York governor who worked in Bill Clinton’s Cabinet and got the ex-president’s endorsement in the race’s waning days.” And in New York City, at least, there was only one winner.
Bring on the hot takes: But for plenty of observers, this wasn’t about identity. Mamdani has promised free buses, free child care, city-run grocery stores, rent freezes, wealth taxes and more. And whatever you think of those kinds of pledges, there’s a running theme that plenty of Dems believe was the real lesson from last night: Mamdani won by focusing relentlessly on the cost of living — the issue poll after poll shows voters care about most. (It’s still the economy, stupid.)
You want more hot takes? There are plenty to choose from. Mamdani won by getting out and talking to people — unlike Cuomo, who relied on ads, endorsements and the like. … Mamdani won with social media buzz, Gen Z-friendly Pop Crave videos and so on — unlike Cuomo, who ran as a traditional Democrat and received a convoluted NYT nonendorsement. … Mamdani won by running as an insurgent and being prepared to criticize Israel over Gaza — unlike Cuomo who has defended PM Benjamin Netanayahu to the hilt.
