🔗 Share this article

Residents of the Big Apple will discover who will be their new city leader this Tuesday, 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 send military troops to the city.

In this context, New York has witnessed a race for mayor that has pitted two distinctly opposing Democratic figures against each other. The election has turned into an acrimonious showdown, laced with accusations of racism and Islamophobia, but it is the ideological divide between the two main contenders that could have significant consequences for how the party fares in next year's midterm elections.

The Rising Progressive

In the progressive corner is the democratic socialist, the 34-year-old democratic socialist whose rapid ascent and people-powered movement has brought international attention. On the establishment side is Andrew Cuomo, the ex- New York governor now running as an independent – and benefiting from the backing of ultra-rich donors and big business.

As the election approaches, it is Mamdani, the one-time underdog who beat Cuomo in the party primary who is solidly positioned as the frontrunner. Mamdani, who has run on a agenda of affordability and pledged to halt rent increases for about two million New Yorkers, has outpaced Cuomo by double-digits in every poll taken in October, and it is very much the younger man's race to lose.

The Controversial Campaign

Yet, the former governor, who resigned as governor in 2021 amid accusations of misconduct, has stated clearly he will battle to the finish, and not necessarily in an fair fashion. He has criticized Mamdani's goals as unrealistic, and in recent days chuckled along as a radio host made Islamophobic remarks about Mamdani, who is a Muslim. Recently, the independent was strongly criticized as racist after posting an artificial intelligence video that included a series of racist stereotypes and showed his opponent releasing a convicts.

It's been a rather grubby end to an election that could be key to the path that the party, floundering in its reaction to Trump's authoritarian grabs, adopts in the near future.

Broader Consequences

If Mamdani wins convincingly, the establishment party leaders who have declined to support his campaign will be compelled to address a message that has appealed to voters' anger at economic disparity, soaring price rises and the political elite. It would be difficult for the Senate leader and the House leader not to embrace at least a portion of Mamdani's progressive proposals about economic justice, given the fresh face has created an excitement within the Democratic ranks perhaps not witnessed since the Vermont senator campaigned for the White House in 2016.

However, if the former governor, who had been expected to win easily in the June primary, complete a remarkable comeback win, it could reinforce national Democrats' existing approach of considered, lackluster resistance – a strategy that has angered the party base. A NYC defeat of the progressive's progressive, positive message could convince party leaders that the wisest course is to remain in the center – even as surveys show the present version of the Democratic party is widely disliked nationwide.

Voter Enthusiasm

Voters in the city seem to prefer the Mamdani vision. Polls show that his backers are much more excited about their candidate than Cuomo backers, something that has been evident during the race. Mamdani's snappy videos on digital platforms, his optimistic vision for New York and his readiness to actually venture out and meet people in the city has drawn an army of more than 50,000 volunteers, many of them youth or new participants.

Negative Tactics

Yet, Cuomo, 67, isn't giving up. And with the risks against him, the ex-leader has resorted to negative campaigning in the final days.

After spending months launching various attacks at his opponent to see what might resonate, the independent has concentrated on targeting the candidate directly. He has labelled Mamdani, who was born in Uganda to Indian parents, an "radical", and popped up on Fox Business for an interview with a rightwing host, where Cuomo asserted New York “will not survive” Mamdani as city leader. It reached a nadir last week, when the former governor laughed along and said “that’s another problem” after a broadcaster said the candidate would “cheer” another 9/11-style attack.

Political Landscape

This strategy mirrors much of what the former president, who has deployed the national guard to the capital and warned to do the same to NYC, has said about Mamdani, and maybe that is expected. A set of wealthy residents, including some who donated to Trump in the last presidential race, have pumped millions into trying to elect Cuomo into office, as other influential figures have urged the Republican candidate to withdraw from the contest.

Political Histories

As far as the Cuomo camp, and his wealthy backers, are worried, it should not have reached to this. When the assemblyman, one of one hundred fifty New York state assembly members, launched his campaign for mayor in October 2024, few had heard of him, and in truth, few even paid attention.

The former governor, by comparison, eased his way into the race in March 2025 and became the instant favorite. He was the political heavyweight who apparently held every edge. The classic establishment figure, he had married a Kennedy and served in Bill Clinton’s administration. He became the state's leader in 2011, seventeen years after his father, the former governor, left office from the same position.

The progressive, who was elected to the state legislature in recently, does not have the comparable background. But his dedication to providing no-cost transit and free childcare – along with the freeze-the-rent pledge – present a brighter outlook of the future than Cuomo’s pessimistic predictions about “mayhem” and rising criminal activity, and his vow to hire more police officers.

Campaign Controversies

Still, the candidate has faced difficulties in recent days, after video surfaced suggesting him implying the NYPD and the Israel Defense Forces were connected.

“We have to make clear that when the pressure of the police is on your throat, it’s been laced by the IDF,” Mamdani said in the recording, filmed at a DSA convention in 2023. The progressive, a vocal opponent of Israel who has said the nation is engaging in atrocities in Gaza, suggested he was criticizing joint training exercises between the city police and IDF.

Emotional Response

With the election nearing, Mamdani appears to have won empathy and backing, however, for his reaction to Cuomo’s increasing rhetoric.

The progressive addressed the independent's terrorism comments in an emotional video. In it, Mamdani remembered how, when he first ran for the legislature, a family member suggested to him that he did not have to disclose about his religion. It was a lesson, Mamdani said, that many Muslim New Yorkers had been taught “again and again”: “That safety could only be found in the margins of our community. That it is in those hidden spaces alone where Muslims could embrace their true selves, and that if we were to step out from those shadows, then it is in those silence that we must set aside our faith.”

Addressing the actions of his opponents, who has alleged Mamd