The left-wing outsider trying to stop Cuomo comeback as NYC mayor

A left-wing candidate has pulled up from behind to become the dark horse in New York City's Democratic mayoral primary. His surprise success is indicative of the debate raging within the Democratic Party on what kinds of leaders they want in the Trump era.

After Donald Trump's stunning 2024 presidential victory - where he made inroads in reliably liberal New York City - a millennial New York state assemblyman had a question.

"What would it take for you to vote for a Democrat in the future?" Zohran Mamdani asked Bronx and Queens residents who either swung for Trump or didn't vote.

The query was part of a video series that went viral and helped make the 33-year-old democratic socialist - with little name recognition - into a serious contender for New York City's mayor.

Democrats in New York head to the polls on Tuesday to choose a nominee to lead America's biggest city. Nine people are vying for the job, in a race that could have implications for the party nationally as it tries to take on Trump.

It is largely a battle between two very different candidates: Queens New York state assemblyman Zohran Mamdani and former governor Andrew Cuomo.

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The race is being watched, not just by New Yorkers, but by Democrats across the country, as it is largely seen as a proxy war for the very real internal battle that has plagued the party ever since Trump won the presidency, expanding his appeal in parts of New York City in the process.

Since then, the party has been engaged in a soul searching mission between left-wing and moderates in the party.

Cuomo - the former New York governor - is largely viewed as the moderate "establishment" candidate, while Mamdani is garnering the support of many young and left-leaning voters. He has been compared to another democratic socialist and a progressive superstar, Representative Alexandria Ocasio Cortez. Both she and Senator Bernie Sanders have endorsed Mr Mamdani.

New York City Comptroller Brad Lander is polling behind a distant third, but since the race uses ranked ballots, he could be a factor in future rounds of voting.

Once 40 points behind, Mamdani has closed the gap with Cuomo and led in a few polls.

He said that voters in the most expensive US city want Democrats to focus on affordability. His platform includes free public buses, universal childcare, freezing rent in subsidized units, and city-run grocery stores.

"This is a city where one in four of its people are living in poverty, a city where 500,000 kids go to sleep hungry every night" he told the BBC at a recent event. "And ultimately, it's a city that is in danger of losing that which it makes it so special."

While he insists he can make the city more affordable, critics question such ambitious promises.

The New York Times did not endorse anyone in the city's mayoral primary, and criticised the candidates generally. Its editorial board said Mamdani's agenda is "uniquely unsuited to the city's challenges" and "often ignores the unavoidable trade offs of governance."

His rent freezes would restrict housing supply, said the board.

The millennial progressive, who would be the city's first Muslim and South Asian mayor, has leaned into his roots in a diverse city. Born in Uganda, his family moved to New York City when he was seven. He's posted one campaign video entirely in Urdu and mixed in Bollywood film clips. In another, he speaks Spanish.

"There's nobody who represents the totality of the issues that I truly care about that's running for mayor currently other than Zohran," Jagpreet Singh, political director for social justice organization DRUM, told the BBC.

"I'm not going to hold my nose for the first time in a long time that can remember to vote for a candidate."

One big question is whether Mamdani's profile has risen enough to beat Cuomo, who has the power of name recognition.

The veteran politician is hoping for an official comeback after resigning as governor four years ago amidst an explosive sexual harassment scandal.

His ties to the city run deep, not just from his time as New York's governor but because of his father Mario Cuomo, who was the longest serving New York governor in modern history. Cuomo now leads among older New Yorkers and - crucially - black voters, who make up about a third of the electorate.

Cuomo has argued his reputation for being moderate is "a myth", citing legislation he passed on marriage equality, criminal justice reform, and climate change protection. He also faces criticism over Covid deaths in nursing homes and his management style.

At a rally hosted earlier this month by the Hotel and Gaming Trades Council, which is among the unions endorsing Cuomo despite calling for his resignation four years ago, Judith Seemungal said she only remembers his support.

"Because of my union, I own a house in New York City, I send three of my grandsons to college, and Mr Andrew Cuomo always, always represents the union," she told the BBC.

Dehavin Irby, with Carpenters Local 571, also attended. "He's done good for us before," he said. "He already knows the city. I think I can trust him."

Cuomo told the BBC that middle class, working families who feel let down by the Democratic Party will ultimately break for his platform, which is focused on affordability and public safety. He attributes Mamdani's rise in polling to younger people attracted to free social programmes.

"There is no free lunch," Cuomo said.

Mamdani doesn't have the experience to lead a city with 300,000 employees and a $115bn budget, said Cuomo.

"Experience, competence, knowing how to do the job, knowing how to deal with Trump, knowing how to deal with Washington, knowing how to deal with the state legislature, these are basics," he said. "I believe in on-the-job training, but not as the mayor of New York."

But Trip Yang, a political strategist, said "experience" isn't necessarily a game changer in this political era. And whether or not Mamdani wins, Mr Yang believes his campaign has done "the unthinkable."

"Zohran is powered by tens of thousands of volunteers, hundreds of thousands of unique donors. It's very rare to see a local Democratic primary New York campaign with this much amount of volunteer and grassroots excitement," he said.

"He understand us. He belong to us. He's from our community, you know, the immigrant community," added supporter Lokmani Rai.

At a recent Mamdani campaign event at a park in Jackson Heights, one of the most diverse communities in the country, children ran and played on swings, as Latino food vendors sold ice cream and snacks.

In many ways, the scene perfectly captured the city's diversity - what many Democrats consider New York's greatest asset. But the city is not without its racial and political tensions. Mamdani said he's received Islamophobic threats daily, some targeting his family. According to police, a hate-crimes investigation into the threats is underway.

He told the BBC that racism is indicative of what's broken in US politics, and criticized a Democratic Party "that allowed for Donald Trump to be re-elected" and fails to stand up for working people "no matter who they were or where they came from".

The candidates' stances on the Israel-Gaza war also will be on voters' minds.

Mamdani's strong support of Palestinians and criticism of Israel put him at odds with most of the Democratic establishment. For example, the assemblyman introduced a bill that would've ended tax-exempt status for New York charities with ties to Israeli settlements that violate international human rights law.

He's also been pressed numerous times by press in interviews to state whether he supports Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state.

"I support Israel's right to exist as a state with equal rights," he said. "I'm not comfortable supporting any state that has a hierarchy of citizenship on the basis of religion or anything else, I think that in the way that we have in this country, equality should be enshrined in every country in the world. That's my belief."

In contrast, Cuomo as governor signed an executive order directing state agencies to divest from companies supporting Boycott Divest Sanction campaigns against Israel, and has described himself as a "hyper supporter of Israel and proud of it".

In many ways the issues facing New York Democrats are the same ones the party faces in future elections, and afterwards, the primary may be dissected nationally for what it says about the party - and how it should take on Trump.