Zohran Mamdani: The outsider who could be New York's next mayor

The world’s eyes are on New York City as voters are on the verge of doing what might have seemed impossible just a year ago - electing Zohran Mamdani, a young Muslim self-described socialist, who has managed to build a broad coalition without changing his messaging, as mayor.

Across New York City, on the eve of election day, with Mamdani commanding a solid lead, there is already a festive atmosphere, with shopkeepers proudly displaying his campaign sign and people visiting from around the world for what many believe will be a historic moment.

“People from around the world have come out. Folks are just really excited about this race. They want to be here for this historic moment,” Basim Elkarra, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations-Action, tells The New Arab, after visiting Little Bangladesh, an immigrant enclave in New York.

“Parents, children, college students, people from all walks of life and different ethnic and religious backgrounds are here. This reminds me of 2008 when [Barack] Obama first ran [for president],” he says.

Announcing his candidacy in October 2024 and starting with just one percent support, Mamdani, who had beaten a longtime incumbent when he ran for the state assembly in 2020, steadily built a coalition.

He began with a base of progressives, then built a coalition with New Yorkers who don’t necessarily agree with him on all issues - often on Israel - but who have been moved by his eagerness to address their concerns, namely the cost-of-living crisis.

“He needs to go into office with as big a mandate as possible. He does have an incentive to build a bigger tent,” J. Miles Coleman, associate editor of Sabato's Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia Centre for Politics, told TNA.

“More than some of these ideological angles, voters don’t like people who are fake. He has that authenticity factor,” he added.

Bringing back retail politics

In June, in what would exemplify his campaign, Mamdani walked the 12-mile length of Manhattan, meeting residents along the way and creating an approachability that seemed to be lacking in his main opponents.

In addition to engaging with progressives and a range of immigrant communities - including ads in Spanish, Urdu, Arabic, and Yiddish - he has also campaigned in the city’s most conservative areas, reaching out to supporters of President Donald Trump, asking about their most pressing concerns.

“It’s brilliant. Against all odds, it’s brilliant,” James Zogby, veteran pollster and president of the Arab American Institute, told TNA.

“This is the way I love politics - when candidates go to each group and treat them with integrity,” he said. “Every group has a name, and they just want you to talk to them. Democrats stopped doing it, and now Mamdani is doing it.”

Many of his “man on the street” moments have been highlighted by his campaign on social media, leading to candidates in different parts of the country imitating his style of walking down the street in a suit and talking to a camera.

The Democratic establishment

The “Mamdani clone” trend has been fodder for comedians, but is understandably raising concerns for progressives, who worry the Democratic establishment could learn the wrong lessons from this campaign.

“There are certainly lessons for the party establishment that I fear they just won’t learn,” says Zogby.

In one memorable debate moment, a moderator asked former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo if he would have done anything differently in his campaign, and he said he could have made better use of social media (instead of acknowledging that he had spent relatively little time engaging with New Yorkers in person).

This apparent inability of the Democratic establishment to move with the times has created the unusual scenario wherein Mamdani, who won the party’s primary in June, then ran against the same Democratic candidates he had defeated in the general election, after his own party leaders didn’t immediately endorse him after his primary win.

Even some centrist Democrats have questioned the party’s logic in not endorsing their party’s primary winner, particularly running against two disgraced politicians, Cuomo, who resigned in disgrace as governor following allegations of sexual harassment and elder neglect in nursing homes, and Eric Adams, who was indicted in September 2024 over alleged bribery.

“I guess I don’t understand what the holdup is in endorsing Zohran Mamdani in the mayor’s race,” said Tim Miller, a host with the political show The Bulwark during an interview in June with Democratic House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries.

“I was a Republican up until two minutes ago, and I’m a capitalist, and I had Zohran on, and I went at him on a variety of issues we disagree on, but it’s not really a close call, is it?” said Miller, who previously worked as communications director for the 2016 presidential campaign of Jeb Bush.

“You have a corrupt mayor who is doing deals with Donald Trump. You got a guy who had to resign in disgrace, who already lost the Democratic primary. It’s not a close call, right? Why not just endorse him and work with him?” he continued, to which Jeffries responded that he was the only one of the candidates he was talking with. Four months later, Jeffries gave a lukewarm endorsement, which Mamdani’s campaign has not listed on their website.

Building street cred on the streets of New York

On the eve of the election, and with Mamdani surging in the polls, at least 14 points ahead of Cuomo, the general absence of endorsements by establishment Democrats could be seen as an asset for a candidate who seems more interested in winning over ordinary New Yorkers than big names, which in the end is what counts at the ballot box.

A last-ditch infusion of campaign donations by billionaires to defeat Mamdani does not appear to have moved the needle, if anything, proving to his supporters that big money can’t replace a well-organised grassroots campaign.

The Democratic Party’s popularity is currently at a historic low, with 54 percent viewing it unfavourably, according to a September poll by Quinnipiac University. This is despite the fact that many key progressive positions within the party are highly popular, including universal healthcare, the legalisation of marijuana, affordable education, limits on campaign spending, and conditioning military aid to Israel on its human rights record. Mamdani has tapped into these sentiments.

While he has focused his campaign on affordability, he has also maintained his support for Palestinians amid Israel’s war in Gaza. Though this has predictably resulted in character attacks, he has used the opportunity to share his personal story. In late October, Mamdani made a speech expressing his pride in his Muslim background.

“I will not change who I am, how I eat, or the faith that I’m proud to call my own. But there is one thing that I will change. I will no longer look for myself in the shadows. I will find myself in the light,” he said, referring to the fear many Muslims feel about being themselves.

It was reminiscent of similar (presidential) campaign speeches by John F. Kennedy in 1960 about his Catholic faith and Mitt Romney in 2007 on his Mormon faith, a chance to address bigotry head-on and recognise changing times.

The 'Mamdani effect'

Mamdani’s improbable rise has made waves across the country, and in some cases around the world. Since his campaign took off, dozens of young progressives have jumped into races across the US, in what is being dubbed the Mamdani effect. Some have flown out to New York for election night.

“I’m seeing stories of people knowing their votes are making a difference. The tide is turning, and American Muslims are getting more involved in politics,” says Elkarra with CAIR.

“It’s amazing to see how Zohran is bringing together Muslim and Hindu communities. It’s a beautiful sight to see. Everyone realises this is a moment we need to build upon,” he adds.

Zogby, who has worked on multiple progressive campaigns over the last five decades, will not be celebrating until the election is called.

“If he wins, it will take people from feeling like there’s no way forward to feeling like there’s a way forward,” he says. “If he loses, I think it sucks the life out of the progressive movement.”

Brooke Anderson is The New Arab's correspondent in Washington DC, covering US and international politics, business, and culture.

Follow her on Twitter: @Brookethenews