New York: Zohair Mamdani, the insurgent Democratic Socialist, won New York City’s mayoral race, capitalising on the liberal metropolis’ antipathy to President Donald Trump and economic angst.
Preliminary results on Tuesday night showed Mamdani, the Democratic Party candidate, winning about 50 per cent of the 2 million votes cast, to 41 per cent polled by former Governor Andrew Cuomo, who ran as an independent after losing the party’s nomination to him in the June primaries.
Mamdani will be the city’s first mayor of Indian descent and the third non-White in the city’s history.
The inexperienced 34-year-old’s victory on a socialist platform poses a strategic conundrum for Democrats reeling from the defeat in last year’s presidential election.
His radicalism may play in a liberal city where Democrats outnumber Republicans by more than two to one, but it could be a turnoff in constituencies where they would have to rely on moderates.
Democratic Party’s Senate Leader Chuck Schumer and former President Barack Obama withheld their endorsements, while some spoke out against him.
Mamdani will confront President Donald Trump, who came out vehemently against him on the eve of the polls, threatening to cut funds for the city if he is elected.
Trump endorsed Cuomo over the Republican Party candidate Curtis Sliwa, the founder of an anti-crime vigilante group, who polled a paltry 7 per cent.
Reacting to the election victories of Mamdani and other Democrats, Trump wrote on Truth Social, “TRUMP WASN’T ON THE BALLOT, AND SHUTDOWN, WERE THE TWO REASONS THAT REPUBLICANS LOST ELECTIONS TONIGHT’, according to Pollsters.”
Cuomo, who conceded defeat, congratulated Mamdani and said he wanted him to succeed for the sake of the “greatest city in world”.
When his supporters booed, he tried to silence them, saying, “That is not us”.
It was a turn from a vicious campaign during which they and their supporters traded insults.
Mamdani is the son of a Shia Muslim Ugandan academic, Mahmood Mamdani, whose ancestry is Indian, and movie director Mira Nair, who is from a Hindu family in India.
Mamdani mobilised an army of youth, fresh off the anti-Israel protests that rocked the city, to wrest the Democratic Party nomination, and they went on to expand his base beyond the young, White, economically well-off base to the working class and the older people.
He offered a socialist platform to people facing a high cost of living in the city, promising free buses, a freeze on rents in some housing, city-run shops, a wave of new home-building, and higher taxes on the rich.
The youthful campaigners ceaselessly worked convincing voters to back the 34-year-old with little experience beyond four years as a state assemblyman, a rapper and a short stint as an activist with a South Asian social welfare organisation, Chhaya.
But Mamdani’s campaign and his past were toxically divisive.
A Khalistan supporter, he participated in a rally at which Khalistanis shouted venomous insults against Hindus.
His campaign for Palestine sometimes verged on anti-Semitic, according to some.
Mamdani threatened to arrest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and boycott Prime Minister Narendra Modi when they visited the city.
He alleged that the city’s police were working with Israel’s military.
Many Jews have felt insecure because of the rise of anti-Semitism, that have seen attacks on them.
Several Hindu temples have also been attacked in the city.
Some of his statements have reflected communist ideology, like taking over the means of production.
Trump’s threat and his endorsement of Cuomo were capitalised by Mamdani, who wore it as a badge of honour, riling up voters displeased with Trump.
The stage is set for a confrontation between Mamdani and Trump, who has moved against Democrat-run cities with aggressive immigration enforcement and deployed federal forces, including the National Guard, for law and order.
Trump has generally gone easy on New York because of an understanding with Mayor Adams.
Many of the promises that Mamdani made to voters may be beyond his ability, as they will require the state’s cooperation and more funds than would be available.
But he can use the alibi that others were obstructing his programme.
He carried out a campaign against the police and wanted to cut their numbers and their budget, but now he will have to deal with people’s fears of crime.
It could be the end of the career for Cuomo, the son of a former governor and who had served on Obama’s cabinet.
He resigned as governor after being accused of sexually harassing employees.
(IANS)
