By STEVE PEOPLES and ANTHONY IZAGUIRRE
NEW YORK (AP) The stunning success ofZohran Mamdani, a 33-year-old self-described democratic socialist, in the race forNew York City mayorhas exposed anew the fiery divisions plaguing the Democratic Party as it struggles to repair its brand nearly half a year intoDonald Trump spresidency.
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The Democratic primary was conceded by Mamdani’s main rival, former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, on Wednesday, sparking a new round of infighting among Democratic officials, funders, and political operatives. Although ranked choice vote counting will decide the final result next week, Mamdani seems to be headed for the nomination.
Numerous progressives applauded the rise of the youthful and affable Mamdani, whose candidacy gained traction due to its emphasis on the cost of living and viral campaign videos. However, the party’s more centrist wing interpreted the result as a major blow to their efforts to increase Democrats’ appeal and get past the more divisive ideas that turned off potential voters in the most recent elections.
In fact, the debate on Wednesday covered a lot more ground than just who would run the biggest city in America for the ensuing four years.
Giddy Republicans viewed Mamdani s success as a political gift that would help shape elections across New Jersey and Virginia this fall and into next year s midterms. And while such predictions are premature, national conservative media focused on the New York election with fresh zeal, suggesting that Mamdani s emerging profile as a prominent Democratic leader will surely grow.
Trump took aim at Mamdani on social media, calling him a 100% Communist Lunatic.
The president wrote, “We’ve had radical lefties before, but this is getting a little ridiculous.” Indeed, this marks a significant turning point in our nation’s history.
Some Democrats also believe that.
Former Democratic President Barack Obama’s Treasury Secretary, Lawrence Summers, expressed grave worries on social media.
Summers remarked, “The results in New York City have me extremely concerned about the future of the (Democratic Party) and the nation.”
Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who had endorsed Mamdani, scoffed at such Democratic critics and instead called for them to follow Mamdani s lead.
In many ways, Mamdani s campaign really shows the direction in which the Democratic Party should be moving. And that is not to worry about what billionaires want, but to worry about what working-class people want, Sanders told The Associated Press.
The Vermont senator warned Republicans against premature celebration.
People like Mamdani are their worst nightmares, Sanders said of the GOP. It s one thing for the Democrats to be strongly against Donald Trump. It is another thing to give working class people something to vote for a positive agenda.
Assuming Mamdani ultimately is the Democratic nominee, he would move to a November election against embattled Mayor Eric Adams, who is running as an independent, Republican candidate Curtis Sliwa and maybe even Cuomo again, should he also choose to run as an independent.
A member of the New York state Legislature since 2021, Mamdani won over Democratic primary voters with an optimistic message centered on the cost-of-living backed by a sprawling grassroots campaign that brought out thousands of volunteers across the city s five boroughs. Initial precinct data shows that he did well in the city s wealthier enclaves while Cuomo struggled in all but majority Black and orthodox Jewish neighborhoods, along with the more conservative Staten Island.
Mamdani s rise was aided by Cuomo s baggage. The 67-year-old Democrat was trying to mount a political comeback from asexual harassment scandalthat forced him to resign the governorship in 2021.
Mamdani has had to sidestep a field of landmines of his own making, centered on his policies and political rhetoric.
He called the New York Police Department racist, anti-queer and a major threat to public safety in a 2020 social media post. As a mayoral candidate, he softened his stance and said that the police served a vital role. Still, he pushed for the creation of a new public safety department that would rely more on mental health care services and outreach workers.
On Israel s war in Gaza, he used the term genocide to describe Israel s actions in the conflict. In the primary s closing stretch, Mamdani also defended the phraseglobalize the intifada, which he described as a desperate desire for equality and equal rights in standing up for Palestinian human rights.
He also faced criticism over his identity as a democratic socialist, a label he refused to back away from.
Mamdani s agenda includes free city bus service, free child care, government-run grocery stores, a rent freeze for people living in rent-regulated apartments and new affordable housing all paid for by raising taxes on the rich.
Matt Bennett, co-founder of the centrist Democratic group Third Way, warned that Mamdani s policies are a political problem for the Democratic Party.
The fact that Mamdani is young, charismatic, a great communicator all of those things are to be emulated, Bennett said. His ideas are bad. And his affiliation with the (Democratic Socialists of America) is very dangerous. It s already being weaponized by the Republicans.
Mamdani s age and ethnic background also earned praise from allies across the country. He would be the youngest New York City mayor in more than a century and its first Muslim and Indian American mayor if elected.
Three of New York’s leading Democrats, Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries, and Governor Kathy Hochul, remained silent on Mamdani during his primary campaign but praised the progressive upstart after it appeared that he would win.
The Democratic leaders, largely considered moderates, applauded his focus on affordability and said they had spoken with him, although none explicitly said they would support him in the November general election.
Mamdani s Democratic critics feared that he would make their task this fall and in next year s midterm elections, which will decide the balance of power in Congress, even more difficult.
The group, Republicans Against Trumpism, a key Democratic ally in the 2024 election, predicted that Republicans would make Mamdani the face of the Democratic Party, hurting moderates in swing districts and Democrats chances of taking back the House.
In a Wednesday radio interview with WNYC, Mamdani acknowledged that his contest had become part of the national debate.
It has been tempting I think for some to claim as if the party has gone too left, he said. When in fact what has occurred for far too long is the abandonment of the same working-class voters who then abandoned this party.
Associated Press writers Matt Brown and Joey Cappelletti in Washington and Jill Colvin in New York contributed to this report.
