🔗 Share this article

New Yorkers will find out the identity of their next mayor this election day, in a race that will determine who governs and protects the nation's most populous metropolis at a moment when Donald Trump has vowed to deploy armed forces to the city.

In this context, New York has experienced a race for mayor that has matched two very different Democratic figures against each other. The contest has turned into an increasingly bitter face-off, laced with accusations of racism and anti-Muslim sentiment, but it is the political differences between the two main contenders that could have major implications for how the Democratic party performs in next year's midterm elections.

The Rising Progressive

On the left side is the democratic socialist, the young democratic socialist whose rapid ascent and people-powered movement has attracted international attention. On the establishment side is Andrew Cuomo, the ex- Democratic New York governor now running as an independent – and benefiting from the backing of ultra-rich donors and corporations.

As the election approaches, it is the progressive, the former longshot who beat his opponent in the party primary who is solidly positioned as the leading candidate. The candidate, who has run on a agenda of affordability and pledged to freeze rent for about 2 million New Yorkers, has led Cuomo by significant margins in every poll conducted in the fall, and it is very much the younger man's election to lose.

The Controversial Campaign

Yet, Cuomo, who stepped down as the state's leader in recent years amid allegations of misconduct, has stated clearly he will battle to the end, and not necessarily in an above-the-belt manner. He has criticized Mamdani's goals as unrealistic, and in the final stretch chuckled along as a radio host made anti-Muslim comments about the candidate, who is Muslim. Two weeks ago, Cuomo was widely condemned as bigoted after posting an AI-generated ad that featured a slew of racist stereotypes and showed Mamdani releasing a group of criminals.

It's been a particularly ugly end to an race that could be key to the direction that the Democratic party, floundering in its response to Trump's authoritarian grabs, takes in the coming years.

Broader Consequences

If the progressive wins convincingly, the party establishment who have declined to support his bid will be compelled to address a platform that has appealed to voters' anger at economic disparity, soaring price rises and the establishment. It would be difficult for Chuck Schumer and the House leader not to adopt at least a portion of the candidate's progressive proposals about affordability, given the fresh face has generated an enthusiasm within the party arguably not witnessed since the Vermont senator ran for president eight years ago.

However, should the former governor, who had been expected to sail to victory in the June primary, complete a surprising comeback victory, it could cement national Democrats' current model of cautious, lackluster opposition – a tactic that has angered grassroots members. A New York defeat of the progressive's progressive, positive message could convince party leaders that the wisest course is to stick to the center – even as polls show the current iteration of the Democratic party is widely disliked nationwide.

Campaign Energy

Residents of New York appear to favor the Mamdani vision. Surveys show that Mamdani supporters are much more excited about their candidate than his opponent's supporters, something that has been apparent throughout the campaign. The candidate's snappy videos on social media, his hopeful outlook for the city and his willingness to actually venture out and meet people in the city has drawn an force of over fifty thousand volunteers, many of them young or new participants.

Negative Tactics

However, Cuomo, in his late sixties, isn't giving up. And with the stakes stacked against him, the former governor has resorted to ugly messaging in recent weeks.

Following extensive throwing basically everything at Mamdani to see what might resonate, Cuomo has concentrated on targeting Mamdani directly. He has labelled his rival, who was of Ugandan origin to South Asian heritage, an “extremist”, and popped up on Fox Business for an interview with a rightwing host, where Cuomo asserted the city “will not survive” Mamdani as city leader. It reached a nadir recently, when Cuomo chuckled and said “that’s another problem” after a radio host said the candidate would “cheer” another terrorist incident.

Campaign Dynamics

The line of attack echoes much of what the former president, who has sent the national guard to the capital and warned to take similar action to NYC, has said about Mamdani, and perhaps that shouldn’t come as a surprise. A set of wealthy residents, including some who donated to the Republican in the 2024 election, have pumped millions into trying to elect the independent into office, as other powerful voices have urged Curtis Sliwa to drop out from the race.

Political Histories

For the Cuomo camp, and his wealthy backers, are worried, it should not have reached to this point. When the assemblyman, one of one hundred fifty state legislators, launched his campaign for mayor in October 2024, not many had heard of him, and in truth, barely anyone even noticed.

The former governor, by contrast, entered smoothly into the race in this year and became the immediate frontrunner. He was the political heavyweight who seemingly held all the advantages. The quintessential establishment figure, he had married a Kennedy and worked in a Democratic presidency. He became the state's leader in 2011, seventeen years after his father, Mario Cuomo, left office from the identical role.

The progressive, who was elected to the state legislature in recently, does not have the same political heritage. But his dedication to providing no-cost transit and free childcare – along with the rent control promise – offer a brighter outlook of the city's direction than his opponent's pessimistic predictions about “mayhem” and rising criminal activity, and his vow to increase police presence.

Campaign Controversies

Nevertheless, the candidate has faced difficulties in the final phase, after video emerged appearing to show him suggesting the NYPD and the IDF were intertwined.

“We have to make clear that when the pressure of the NYPD is on your throat, it’s been influenced by the Israeli military,” the candidate said in the clip, recorded at a DSA gathering in recent years. Mamdani, a longtime critic of the Israeli government who has said the country is committing genocide in the Palestinian territory, suggested he was questioning joint training exercises between the NYPD and IDF.

Emotional Response

With the election nearing, the candidate appears to have won sympathy and support, however, for his response to his opponent's escalating attacks.

The progressive addressed the independent's terrorism comments in an emotional video. In it, Mamdani remembered how, when he first campaigned for state assembly, a family member suggested to him that he did not have to tell people about his religion. It was a realization, he said, that many Muslim New Yorkers had been taught “again and again”: “That safety could only be found in the margins of our city. That it is in those hidden spaces alone where followers of Islam could express their true selves, and that if we were to emerge from those seclusion, then it is in those silence that we must leave our faith.”

Addressing the actions of his opponents, who has claimed Mamd