Zohran Mamdani, a 33-year-old Queens assemblyman and son of filmmaker Mira Nair and scholar Mahmood Mamdani, has won the Democratic primary for New York City mayor, defeating former governor Andrew Cuomo with 43.5% of first-place votes. If elected in November, Mamdani would become the city’s first Muslim mayor.
His campaign, supported by endorsements from Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, mobilised 50,000 volunteers and focused on affordability, proposing a rent freeze for one million stabilised apartments, construction of 200,000 affordable homes, free city buses, and universal childcare funded by taxes on the wealthy.
Mamdani’s stance on Israel-Palestine, including support for the BDS movement and criticism of Israeli actions in Gaza, has drawn national attention. He has pledged to increase the anti-hate crime budget by 800% and protect undocumented immigrants. The general election will see him face Curtis Sliwa and incumbent Eric Adams.
