Eight months ago, I pitched a story about a 33-year-old democratic socialist from Queens with an unfamiliar name who was running for mayor against a former governor with a name synonymous with New York City politics.
Most people in the pundit and consultant class said that the no-name candidate didn’t have a shot in hell. One of my sources—the CEO of a giant business that you definitely have heard of—didn’t even learn how to pronounce the long shot’s name until his surprise victory in the Democratic primary.
“Mameldani,” the CEO always said.
It was Mamdani. Everyone knows how to say it now. And last night, Zohran Mamdani defeated former New York governor Andrew Cuomo by nearly 10 percentage points. Mamdani received the most votes for New York City mayor since 1969.
“My friends, we have toppled a political dynasty,” Mamdani said with a twinkle of delight in his eyes at his victory party in downtown Brooklyn. On New Year’s Day, he will become the first Muslim mayor in the city’s history. And he could transform the largest city in America—and the future of the Democratic Party.
