🔗 Share this article

New Yorkers will learn who will be their new city leader this Tuesday, in a contest that will decide who runs and protects the nation's largest city at a moment when Donald Trump has threatened to deploy armed forces to the city.

In this context, New York has experienced a mayoral election that has matched two distinctly opposing Democrats against each other. The election has turned into an increasingly bitter showdown, laced with alleged racism and Islamophobia, but it is the ideological divide between the two main candidates that could have major implications for how the party performs in next year's midterm elections.

The Progressive Challenger

On the left side is the democratic socialist, the young democratic socialist whose meteoric rise and people-powered movement has attracted international attention. On the establishment side is the former governor, the former New York governor now campaigning independently – and benefiting from the support of ultra-rich donors and big business.

With days to go, it is the progressive, the one-time underdog who beat Cuomo in the party primary who is solidly positioned as the frontrunner. Mamdani, who has campaigned on a agenda of affordability and pledged to freeze rent for about two million city residents, has led Cuomo by double-digits in every poll taken in the fall, and it is very much the progressive's election to throw away.

The Controversial Campaign

However, Cuomo, who stepped down as governor in recent years amid accusations of misconduct, has made it clear he will fight to the end, and not necessarily in an above-the-belt fashion. He has criticized his opponent's goals as unrealistic, and in recent days laughed as a broadcaster made anti-Muslim comments about the candidate, who is a Muslim. Recently, the independent was widely condemned as bigoted after sharing an AI-generated ad that featured a series of racist stereotypes and showed his opponent releasing a group of criminals.

It's been a particularly ugly conclusion to an race that could be critical to the path that the party, floundering in its response to the former president's authoritarian grabs, takes in the coming years.

Broader Consequences

If the progressive wins convincingly, the establishment party leaders who have declined to support his bid will be compelled to address a message that has resonated with Americans' anger at inequality, inflation and the establishment. It would be difficult for the Senate leader and Hakeem Jeffries not to adopt at least a portion of Mamdani's ambitious ideas about economic justice, given the fresh face has created an enthusiasm within the Democratic ranks perhaps not seen since the Vermont senator ran for president eight years ago.

However, if Cuomo, who had been expected to sail to victory in the Democratic primary, achieve a remarkable riches-to-rags-to-riches win, it could cement national Democrats' current model of considered, lackluster resistance – a strategy that has infuriated grassroots members. A New York rejection of Mamdani's progressive, positive message could persuade Schumer and Jeffries that the best plan is to remain in the center – even as surveys show the current iteration of the party is deeply unpopular across the country.

Voter Enthusiasm

Voters in the city appear to favor the progressive agenda. Surveys show that Mamdani supporters are much more excited about their choice than Cuomo backers, something that has been apparent during the race. The candidate's engaging content on digital platforms, his optimistic vision for the city and his willingness to actually venture out and connect with voters in the city has drawn an army of over fifty thousand supporters, many of them youth or first-time voters.

Personal Attacks

Yet, the former governor, 67, continues to fight. And with the stakes stacked against him, the ex-leader has resorted to negative campaigning in the final days.

Following extensive launching various attacks at Mamdani to see what might resonate, Cuomo has concentrated on attacking the candidate directly. He has labelled his rival, who was of Ugandan origin to South Asian heritage, an “extremist”, and popped up on conservative media for an interview with a rightwing host, where Cuomo claimed the city “will not survive” his opponent as city leader. It reached a nadir last week, when the former governor laughed along and said “that’s another problem” after a radio host said the candidate would “cheer” another 9/11-style incident.

Campaign Dynamics

The line of attack mirrors much of what Trump, who has deployed the national guard to Washington DC and warned to take similar action to NYC, has said about the progressive, and perhaps that is expected. A set of billionaire New Yorkers, including some who contributed to Trump in the last presidential race, have invested heavily into trying to get Cuomo into office, as other powerful voices have urged Curtis Sliwa to drop out from the race.

Candidate Backgrounds

As far as the his team, and his wealthy backers, are worried, it should never have come to this point. When the assemblyman, one of one hundred fifty state legislators, started his campaign for mayor in last year, few had known him, and in reality, few even paid attention.

The former governor, by contrast, eased his way into the race in March 2025 and became the immediate frontrunner. He was the big beast who apparently held every edge. The classic establishment figure, he had wed a political dynasty member and served in Bill Clinton’s administration. He assumed office as New York governor in 2011, 17 years after his parent, the former governor, stepped down from the identical role.

The progressive, who was elected to the New York state assembly in recently, does not have the comparable background. But his dedication to providing free buses and affordable child services – along with the rent control promise – offer a brighter outlook of the future than his opponent's pessimistic predictions about “mayhem” and rising criminal activity, and his promise to hire more police officers.

Recent Challenges

Still, the candidate has faced some challenges in the final phase, after video surfaced suggesting him suggesting the New York police department and the Israel Defense Forces were intertwined.

“We have to make clear that when the pressure of the police is on your throat, it’s been influenced by the IDF,” Mamdani said in the recording, filmed at a DSA convention in 2023. The progressive, a vocal opponent of the Israeli government who has said the country is committing genocide in Gaza, indicated he was questioning joint training exercises between the NYPD and Israeli forces.

Powerful Moment

As the race closes, the candidate seems to have gained sympathy and support, however, for his reaction to his opponent's escalating attacks.

Mamdani addressed the independent's 9/11 remarks in an heartfelt recording. In it, the candidate recalled how, when he first ran for the legislature, a Muslim uncle advised to him that he did not have to tell people about his Muslim faith. It was a realization, he said, that many local Muslims had been told “again and again”: “That security 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 step out from those shadows, then it is in those shadows that we must leave our faith.”

Speaking to the behavior of Cuomo and Sliwa, who has alleged Mamd