A historic night unfolded in New York City as 34-year-old Zohran Mamdani, a Democratic Socialist and state assemblyman, surged to victory in the mayoral race—an extraordinary political comeback few thought possible a year ago.
Early voting data and record-high turnout throughout the city—except for Republican-leaning Staten Island—showed Mamdani dominating across major boroughs. His numbers quickly built a commanding lead over former governor Andrew Cuomo, a fixture in New York’s political establishment.
With ballots still being counted projections show Mamdani ahead by roughly 100,000 votes. Placing him near or above the 50 percent threshold for an outright majority.
“This blowout,” said ABC’s Rick Klein, noting that Mamdani’s support mirrored his strongest districts from previous elections particularly in Manhattan and the Bronx. “He came from single digits to an overwhelming lead against some of the biggest names in New York City politics.”
At Mamdani’s campaign headquarters in downtown Brooklyn, the atmosphere was jubilant. “It’s a boisterous scene here,” reported correspondent Aaron Katersky. “Zohran Mamdani—a 34-year-old Democratic Socialist, Muslim man with limited political experience—is now the new face of New York. A religious barrier has fallen tonight.”
The victory carries symbolic weight beyond city politics. A quarter-century after the 9/11 attacks, New York City has elected its first Muslim American mayor.
Zoran Mandani becomes New York City’s 111th mayor.
Alexandra Rojas, executive director of Justice Democrats, says Mamdani’s victory should “put every single entrenched, corporate Democrat on notice”.
“If you’re not serving the interests of everyday people, your time in office limited,” she said in a statement.
Justice Democrats support progressive democrats in primaries across the country.
Rojas said Mamdani showed upstart candidates could take on incumbents if they are “willing to be a voice that unites the working class against the wealthy elites”.
“Now is the moment to build on our work to transform the Democratic Party through Democratic primaries nationwide,” she added.
We now have a reaction from the Republican leader.
“Democrats in New York City have chosen a true extremist and Marxist, and the consequences will be felt across our entire nation. Zohran Mamdani’s election cements the Democrat Party’s transformation to a radical, big-government socialist party,” he wrote in a post on X.
“Mayor-Elect Mamdani’s extreme agenda the future of the Democrat Party. But we will never allow it to be the future of America,” he added.
