First Thing: Mamdani wins NYC mayoral primary after Cuomo concedes

The Guardian

6 days ago

Good morning.
Zohran Mamdani, the 33-year-old democratic socialist, declared victory in New York City's Democratic primary Tuesday night as former governor Andrew Cuomo conceded the race.
With 93% of votes counted in the primary's first round, the progressive who is now favored to become the city's first Muslim mayor had 43.5% of the vote, with Cuomo trailing behind at 36.4%. As he conceded, Cuomo said Mamdani had run a 'really smart and good and impactful campaign'.
Mamdani's victory – after he ran on a cost-of-living platform that included rent freezes – comes amid deep fissures within his party, highlighted after two union leaders resigned from its top leadership board over the party's direction.
What happens now? As neither candidate is likely to reach 50%, the board of elections will now add up people's second-choice votes – from which Mamdani is expected to benefit more.
How likely is he to be elected mayor in November's general mayoral election? Cuomo may still run as an independent, but Mamdani is the favorite, given incumbent Eric Adams's unpopularity and the city voting heavily Democratic.
Donald Trump's strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities at the weekend did not destroy two of the sites and probably only delayed its nuclear program by a few months, according to two people familiar with a classified initial assessment report.
The report by the Pentagon's intelligence arm found that key components of the nuclear program could be restarted within months and that much of its highly enriched uranium was moved before the strike.
How has the leaked report been received? Trump is angry about it – and the White House has claimed its an attempt to 'demean' him.
To follow the latest updates on this rapidly developing story, head to our liveblog.
The Trump administration has approved a $30m grant to the controversial Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), despite a chaotic rollout during which Israeli forces have killed hundreds of Palestinians near distribution centers policed by soldiers and private military contractors.
GHF's critics say it has politicised the distribution of aid, as it reportedly collaborates with the Israeli government.
Insiders said the application for the grant was rushed through the state department unusually fast for a first-time applicant.
What does the US state department say? It refused to comment on internal deliberations, but a spokesperson said: 'We are constantly looking for creative solutions to get aid into Gaza without it being looted by Hamas, and GHF stepped up.'
A man on his honeymoon in Florida recently died after reportedly being struck by lightning from a storm several miles away.
An appeals court has ordered the Trump administration to return Jordin Melgar-Salmeron to the US after it wrongfully deported him to El Salvador.
Kenyans are marking the first anniversary of a storming of parliament last year, but there are fears the action could escalate.
A notorious 19-year-old Doge staffer nicknamed 'Big Balls' has resigned from the US government, a White House official said.
Despite up to 91% of people in the US and Europe saying they would be willing to try plant-based 'alternative meats', just about 20% would consider eating insects, polling has found. It seems most can't get over the yuck factor, meaning encouraging them to eat insects is unlikely to help cut down on environmentally detrimental meat consumption. Efforts, therefore, should be directed elsewhere.
Marcus Skeet is only 17, but he's already battled a host of health issues, from type 2 diabetes and depression to anxiety and obsessive compulsive disorder. He also became a young carer after his dad developed dementia. After a suicide attempt, he began to walk – and then run. In April this year, he took on a mammoth task, running the length of Britain and raising £111,000 (about $150,000) for a mental health charity. Here, he recounts the highs and lows of the experience.
In the US, call or text Mental Health America at 988 or chat 988lifeline.org. You can text HOME to 741741 to connect with a crisis counsellor.
Judges are increasingly scrutinizing companies' efforts to offset their emissions by buying carbon credits, an analysis of 3,000 climate-related lawsuits globally has found. They join advertising watchdogs in exercising skepticism, which have been dealing with dubious climate neutrality claims for several years.
Cast your mind back to 2013's grossest story: the cruise between Texas and Mexico that turned spectacularly disgusting after its sewage system broke down, leading its passengers' social conditioning to near breaking point. You can now watch the pure chaos unfold in a wild new Netflix documentary – provided you've got a strong enough stomach.
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