Can Mamdani's Energetic Campaign Be a Blueprint for Democrats?
Last Friday evening, Zohran Mamdani, sweaty and grinning, began walking south from the northern tip of Manhattan as part of a final push for votes in New York City's fiercely contested Democratic mayoral primary.
Mr. Mamdani, a Queens-based progressive state assemblyman, strolled down from Inwood Hill to Battery Park, his campaign shooting video along the way. He hugged a bicyclist. He dapped up a man outside a bodega. He ate a slice of pizza.
In other words, he looked like a normal human being — albeit one who was on a 13-mile walk in the middle of the night.
In the months since their loss to President Trump last November, Democrats have been engaged in a prolonged period of hand-wringing and soul-searching, seeking answers for how to win back the voters who said the party had lost touch with them and catered too much to elites. Strategists and focus-group researchers proposed one seemingly simple fix more often than anything else: Just be yourself.
In New York, Mr. Mamdani embraced that strategy. Through slick social media videos and an army of thousands of volunteers, he defied conventional political wisdom about how to win a citywide race in a deep-blue city.
He has also offered national Democrats still licking their wounds after bruising losses last November a test case in re-energizing voters. The 33-year-old democratic socialist ran an unorthodox campaign that seemed to catch lightning in a bottle, surging from little-known statehouse politician to late-stage front-runner alongside a more accomplished rival, former Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo.
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The Brief In a one-on-one conversation with FOX 5 NY's Morgan McKay, Zohran Mamdani responded to the lack of endorsements from major Democratic leaders, while expressing confidence in his plans to tax millionaires. Mamdani addressed concerns from business leaders and critics, including Mayor Eric Adams, by highlighting his willingness to negotiate on most issues, except those related to affordability, and his commitment to expanding his coalition. Despite criticism from some Jewish voters regarding his stance on Israel, Mamdani expressed his intent to engage with all New Yorkers and meet with Jewish leaders to address their concerns. NEW YORK - From the lack of endorsements from Democratic leadership to being labeled a "snake oil salesman" by the incumbent mayor, Zohran Mamdani's Democratic primary domination in the NYC mayoral race is anything but politics as usual. Yet the candidate, a 33-year-old self-described democratic socialist, insists that his progressive agenda shows that policies labeled as "non-starters"—like raising taxes on millionaires—are, in fact, what New Yorkers really want. While the results are not yet finalized, Mamdani's camp credits his likely victory on an enthusiastic ground game centered on listening to constituents in all five boroughs. In a conversation with FOX 5 NY's Morgan McKay, Mamdani delves into his conversations with Democratic leaders, expresses confidence in his promise to tax the rich as mayor, insists he'd be willing to negotiate with business leaders and shares plans to meet with Jewish leaders. Watch the full interview in this week's episode of Politics Unusual, in the media player above. What they're saying Mamdani says after primary election night, he received congratulatory calls from Democratic leaders like House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, but notes they have not yet issued full-out endorsements. In the interview, he didn't show concern, as he said he's noticed a "hunger" for a "different kind of politics." "I look to earn every endorsement every single day of this race. And the coalition that we have built, it is only going to expand in the days and weeks and months to come," he said. Still, he fell short of labeling the Democratic Party as "out of touch" when asked, saying he'd instead like to "listen more and lecture less." And endorsements are trickling in, including a post-election nod from Rep. Jerry Nadler, who backed. Scott Stringer in the primary. Also this week, two major trade unions, the Hotel and Gaming Trades Council and 32BJ SEIU, have shifted their support to Mamdani for the general election after backing former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the primary. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul is also another Democratic big wig to issue the congratulatory non-endorsement, balking at the idea of raising taxes on wealthy New Yorkers and corporations. Mamdani's big campaign promises - free child care, free buses, a rent freeze - would be largely funded by raising the corporate tax rate and income taxes for the city's millionaires by 2%. But any tax hikes would need to be implemented in conjunction with Albany. Despite this reality, Mamdani says: "In the same way that people describe raising taxes as a non-starter, they would have described this campaign as a non-starter, and here we are having won the Democratic primary before ranked choice voting was even tabulated. That's the kind of movement we're building that will deliver a more affordable city." In a recent FOX 5 NY interview, New York City power-broker Kathryn Wylde called some of Mamdani's policies "terrifying" but shared that she was "delighted" to learn that he's willing to meet with her. Mamdani agreed that he would be willing to negotiate on most items, aside from the affordability policies that buttress his campaign. "I've always appreciated the time and the back and forth because even where there is disagreement," he said of Wylde. "There's room for negotiation, there's room for compromise, but not on the outcomes of making this city more affordable," he added. Mamdani said there is "room for everyone" when asked if Cuomo should run in general election following his primary night concession. He also suggested that his certain general election opponent, Mayor Eric Adams, was projecting when he called Mamndai a "snake oil salesman." "I think ultimately, these are the words of someone who looks at the results in Bed-Stuy, who looks at the results in Harlem, who looks at the results in Washington Heights - neighborhoods that he won in 2021 in single digits - that we just won in double digits, and sees that his coalition is, in fact, becoming a new coalition, one that will actually deliver on the promises he made in 2021, not betray them like he did over the last four years," he said. Some Jewish voters, an important voting bloc in the city, have criticized Mamdani's support of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement and his use of the term "genocide" to describe Israel's war on Gaza, according to the Associated Press. Mamdani insisted that he want to "respect and respond to each and every Jewish New Yorker and New York at large" and that they are "not just looking to represent those that voted for me or just those that vote for Andrew Cuomo or those that even don't vote at all. Ultimately I want to represent all New Yorkers." He also said he was committed to meeting Jewish leaders who may have concerns about the election. The Source This article uses reporting from McKay's interview with Mamdani, comments from other leaders and the Associated Press.
