Zohran Mamdani has won the race for New York City mayor, according to Decision Desk HQ, ushering in a new era of progressive politics in the city and reigniting the debate over the Democratic Party’s future.

Mamdani, a 34-year-old democratic socialist, is poised to become the first millennial and first Muslim to lead New York City, after a campaign that pulled off one of the most stunning political upsets in recent memory. He defeated former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who mounted a long-shot independent bid after losing to Mamdani in the Democratic primary, and Republican Curtis Sliwa in his bid to succeed Mayor Eric Adams.

Mamdani focused heavily on affordability, pledging to freeze rent, establish city-owned grocery stores and make buses free for riders. He quickly became a progressive icon as well as a polarizing figure within the party over his positions, so much so that it divided prominent New York Democratic leadership over whether to endorse him.

  • jj4211@lemmy.world
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    2 hours ago

    NYC had ranked choice in the primaries, but honestly I don’t think it mattered this time because as far as I could tell, Mamdani was the only vaguely credible candidate from the onset. The field was otherwise pretty broken by the Eric Adams mess and Cuomo trying to stage a political comeback despite being at his best times merely an ‘acceptable’ politician and then suffering scandal.