The Election for the Mayor of New York has just happened this past Tuesday, November 4th.  And winning the race is Democratic nominee Zohran Kwame Mamdani!

Mamdani – who won the Democratic primary over former governor Andrew Cuomo – has come as a shock of a candidate to many.  He’s only 34, openly a “Democratic Socialist”, and doesn’t follow many of the criteria we’ve grown to expect from politicians.   It is this along with many other things that led to a heavy amount of push-back – in particular from Andrew Cuomo.  Who, following his loss of the Democratic Primary, ran as the Independent party against Mamdani and Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa.

Cuomo, over the course of this election, hadn’t spoken much in regards to what he would do for New York.  Instead, his consistent focus in nearly all media appearances as of late has been why Mamdani should not be the mayor.  As an ABC article writes, “Cuomo, now running as an independent, spent much of the evening repeating his case that Mamdani lacks the experience to lead America’s biggest city and that his agenda is too radically left” (ABC , Oct. 20, 2025).  More recently he remained steadfast on  Mamdani’s relationship with Twitch streamer Hasan Piker, who in 2019 made the remark “America deserved 9/11”.  In addition, Cuomo accuses Mamdani of not denouncing Hamas and the phrase “Globalise the intifada” – an anti-zionist slogan.  Much of this opposition was funded and backed by various donors – many Republican – such as Bill Ackman, Michael Bloomberg, and DoorDash.

In stark comparison to Cuomos approach, Zohran is showing many – especially younger voters, an almost entirely new thing under the sun.  He has, down to the very last day of the election, campaigned and given speeches and interacted with people.  His campaign led to hundreds of thousands of doors being knocked on, thousands of volunteers were involved to spread the word.  He has had a very prevalent social media presence which undoubtedly had an impact on the young voters.  Most central to him as a politician however, is his unwavering policy base – the affordability of the cost of living in New York city.

He has stuck to his plans to freeze rent on rent-stabilized residencies, to make fast and free buses, and free childcare.  As well as an increase of taxes on corporations and the 1% of the wealthiest New Yorkers.  He has went on strikes with taxi drivers and engaged in protest prior to running for Mayor.  He has kept up all of this while wearing a charismatic personality and winning smile.  As Jill Colvin and Anthony Izaguirre wrote for PBS, “Mamdani said he planned to keep his issues focused on affordability, that have fueled his momentum and earned him national attention” (Izaguirre, Oct. 23, 2025).  It is this attitude and dedication that boosted his popularity, and led to his historic win.

Mamdani’s win in this race marks the first Muslim Mayor of New York City.  As afformentioned, the volunteers of his campaign was monumental and undoubtedly noteworthy.  This could lead to a changing tide of the political landscape.  As a Muslim, and a self proclaimed Democratic Socialist over 30 years younger than his two adversaries.  Mamdani stands out as he consistently lead in polls and now has become the mayor of the most populous and wealthiest city in the United States.