EXCLUSIVE Fascinating reason why America's bluest city could elect a REPUBLICAN mayor

Daily Mail​

6 hours ago

Republicans have a shock chance to win the New York City mayoral election for the first time in 20 years as Democratic rivals turn on each other.
Controversial vigilante group leader Curtis Silwa will take on Zohran Mamdani in the November 4 election after the socialist upstart won Tuesday's primary.
Silwa lost to incumbent mayor Eric Adams in a landslide four years ago, but believes he has a much better chance this time after the bitter Mamdani-Cuomo faceoff.
Sore losers Adams and Andrew Cuomo are expected to contest the election as independents after failing to win the Democratic nomination.
Their presence on the ballot could split the left-wing vote so badly that Silwa could sneak in first if NYC's Republicans all show up to the polls.
'I'm the only Republican and I start with 30 per cent of the vote, minimum, so if I go up a few percentage points, I'm mayor,' he told the Daily Mail.
'All you have to do is do the math.'
Mamdani, 33, came from obscurity to outgun Cuomo with a well-organized ground game blanketing the entire city with enthusiastic canvassers and slick marketing.
Usually winning the primary would be all it took to become mayor in deep-blue NYC that hasn't elected a Republican since Michael Bloomberg in 2005, and even he only switched parties to avoid a crowded Democratic primary.
But this time Mamdani will have to overwhelm his far more experienced rivals a second time as they refuse to go quietly.
Another wildcard in the race is former assistant US attorney Jim Walden who is also running as an independent.
No polls simulating a battle royale between Adams, Cuomo, Mamdani, and the rest of the field have been conducted.
Two polls by Emerson College pitting Cuomo against Adams, Silwa, and Walden showed him easily winning, and the same if he was swapped for Mamdani.
Other polls with an even wider field by the Manhattan Institute showed similar results, but none included both Cuomo and Mamdani.
Silwa heads the vigilante group Guardian Angels, who in their distinctive red jackets and berets claims to foil crime on NYC streets.
He is unsurprisingly running on a law and order platform, pledging to hire 7,000 extra NYPD officers and repeal Cuomo's bail reforms, which he claims let too many violent criminals back onto the streets.
Silwa also plans a big effort to reduce fare evasion on the subway and prioritize prosecuting suspects accused of crime against women and minorities on it.
Teams of social workers would also roam the subway network to assist homeless and mentally ill people and get them into shelters.
He also hopes to address NYC's housing shortage by changing zoning rules and building more density outside Manhattan.
Vegan Silwa also believed his animal-friendly views and policy of banning shelters from killing strays would give him an edge.
'It's an icebreaker with so many people who would never vote for a Republican,' he said.
Silwa said Mandami's rivals failed because they didn't understand the changing mood and demographics in NYC, and what young people want.
'What Cuomo and Adams don't understand because they are baby boomers, is we're the minority now,' he said.
'This is the 1960s all over again, they can't figure out why you growing your hair long, why are you smoking weed? Why are you going to anti-war protests?
'Mandami represents that counterculture.
'I'm used to dealing with young people, I understand how they think, I understand what motivates them
'You will lose the millennials if you make it us versus them, and they are the majority now of the population.'
Silwa said Cuomo 'self-destructed' because he was out of touch.
'They're not in the neighborhoods, they're not in the streets, they spend all their time up in the suites. That was Andrew Cuomo's problem,' he said.
Mamdani took a commanding 43.51 per cent to 36.42 per cent lead over Cuomo in the first round of counting with Brad Lander in third with 11.31 per cent.
As no candidate has more than half the vote, the ranked choice voting system will kick in to decide the winner based on preferences.
But Mamdani's lead was big enough for Cuomo to concede the primary to his rival late on Tuesday night.
Cuomo, in a speech to supporters, said Mamdani 'won' and that 'we are going to take a look and make some decisions. Tonight is his night'.
All three Democrats have serious baggage that could depress turnout among left-leaning voters and further aid Silwa's chances.
Adams didn't even contest the primary after polls showed he was certain to lose, and instead declared he would run as an independent from the outset.
Goodwill from his rousing 2021 victory quickly evaporated after he was charged with corruption in September for allegedly receiving illegal campaign contributions from the Turkish Government in exchange for influence.
He was charged with with conspiracy to commit wire fraud, federal program bribery and accepting campaign contributions from foreign nationals.
Adams was also accused of defrauding New York City taxpayers of $10 million through allegedly fraudulent campaign financing.
'What NYC deserves is a mayor who's proud to run on his record - not one who ran from his record, or one who has no record,' Adams said after Mamdani's victory.
'We deserve a mayor who will keep driving down crime, support our police, fight anti-Semitism, and stand up for working-class New Yorkers. It's time to unite.'
Donald Trump forced ordered prosecutors to dismiss the charges earlier this year, around the time Adams suddenly began vocally backing the president's migrant crackdown.
Despite avoiding possible federal prison, Adams' electoral support evaporated and he had virtually no chance of getting the nomination.
Silwa mocked Adams as being in Trump's pocket after he bailed him out.
'The only reason he's not in jail is because of President Donald Trump,' he said.
'He's a eunuch now. When President Trump calls and he says, Eric, I want you to jump, he asks how high.'
Cuomo, who won three terms as New York governor, resigned in 2021 after a report from the state attorney general concluded he sexually harassed 11 women.
He denied any wrongdoing and later said he regretted caving to pressure and stepping down.
Cuomo's career was raised from the dead on the back of massive donations from wealthy Americans to his super PAC Fix the City.
Mamdani has little professional experience, having only been employed a total of three years between graduating college in 2014 and his election to the New York State Assembly in 2020.
He is also accused of not doing very much once he was elected, skipping 231 votes in the Assembly this year, more than half and the most of any member.
His proposals include rent freezes, a free city bus service, universal childcare, and city-subsidized grocery stores - all of which are controversial.
Mamdani vowed to pay for his extravagant wishlist by raising taxes on wealthy New Yorkers. To do so, he would need the stamp of approval from Governor Kathy Hocul and state lawmakers - who have already rubbished the proposal.
But his biggest problem is he is perceived as anti-Semitic for his anti-Israel views and refusal to denounce fringe elements of pro-Palestine activism who regularly call to 'Globalize the Intifada'.