(New Mamdani victory speech)
NEW YORK (dpa-AFX) – According to consistent projections by US media, the left-wing democrat Zohran Mamdani has won the nationally important mayoral election in New York. After more than 97 percent of the votes were counted, the 34-year-old was in an unassailable lead, as the AP news agency and several US television stations reported based on figures from the New York election management.
At the head of the largest city in the USA and as the first Muslim to hold this office, the charismatic newcomer could become an important opponent of US President Donald Trump. Shortly before the election, Trump threatened to limit federal funding for the city to the absolute minimum if Mamdani won.
New York City is not only considered the economic and cultural center of the United States. The east coast metropolis with around eight million inhabitants also has particular political importance.
“In this moment of political darkness, New York will be the light,” said Mamdani during his victory speech at an event in the New York borough of Brooklyn – and then addressed the US President, whose government had recently taken drastic action against people who had come into the country illegally. New York will remain a city of immigrants, he emphasized. “To get to one of us, you have to get past all of us.”
Trump favorite Cuomo admits defeat
According to preliminary projections, Mamdani prevailed by around ten percentage points against New York’s former governor Andrew Cuomo, who ran as an independent candidate after his defeat in the Democratic primary and had already admitted his defeat. The Republican Curtis Sliwa ended up far behind. Trump had called for Cuomo to be elected to prevent Mamdani from winning.
More than two million people cast their votes – according to election officials, more than ever since 1969. The previous mayor, Democrat Eric Adams, also entered the race despite a corruption scandal, but then withdrew his candidacy because of his low chances of success. He also congratulated Mamdani on his election victory.
Senator Schumer: “Historic and well-deserved victory”
Numerous other prominent politicians also congratulated Mamdani. The left-wing candidate had achieved “one of the greatest political upheavals in modern American history,” wrote left-wing Senator Bernie Sanders on
The Democratic minority leader in the US Senate, Chuck Schumer, also from New York, congratulated Mamdani on a “historic and well-deserved victory”. Civil rights activist Al Sharpton even compared Mamdani to the Democratic former president Barack Obama. Not since his election victory in 2008 have voters been so euphoric and hopeful about a candidate.
Mamdani promises rent caps and free buses
Mamdani was born in Uganda, has Indian roots and is considered a rising star on the American left. He is currently a member of the New York State Parliament.
During the election campaign, he promised a policy that is primarily geared towards the needs of low and average earners and is intended to reduce the horrendous cost of living in the metropolis: He is planning a rent cap, free buses and free childcare. This is to be financed through higher taxes for the wealthy and companies.
His opponents accused him of, among other things, a lack of experience. In addition, his sometimes drastic criticism of Israel’s government was met with rejection by parts of New York’s Jewish population. In his victory speech, Mamdani emphasized that he wanted to take action against anti-Semitism.
During the election campaign, Cuomo tried, among other things, to stir up anti-Islamic sentiments and stir up sentiment against Mamdani with memories of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001 – even if he distanced himself from it afterwards.
Mamdani said in his victory speech that he was young, a Muslim and a democratic socialist – “and I refuse to apologize for any of it.”
Break with the course of the Democrats
Mamdani’s success story challenges the established power structures in US politics. He represents a clear break with the Democrats’ current course and is at the same time an enemy for Trump and his Republicans. Mamdani financed his election campaign primarily through small donations – a conscious signal against the influence of large donors, which he blames on Republicans and Democrats alike. In the election campaign he was supported primarily by young voters, trade unions and many people with an immigration background.
It is expected that his success will fuel an internal debate among the Democrats: between those who are relying on a significantly more left-wing orientation in order to stand up to President Trump and those who are promoting a more moderate course. Mamdani and his political supporters – including the well-known Senator Sanders and Congresswoman Ocasio-Cortez – see the election result as proof that left-wing politics can have a majority in the USA./cah/DP/mis