Zohran Mamdani won his NYC primary on an affordability agenda. How have his ideas worked in Boston?
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Mamdani has made no secret of the inspiration he takes from his neighbors to the north. His campaign
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Here's a breakdown of how key policy proposals of Mamdani,
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Fare-free buses
One of Mamdani's main campaign promises is to eliminate fares, usually $2.90, on city buses. Boston has some experience with that.
On Wu's
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A passenger boarded the free 28 bus at the Ruggles station in 2023.
Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff
Wu's initial pilot program was slated to last two years. But in 2024, with 12 million trips and estimated rider savings of more than $6 million under its belt,
Responses have been mixed. The
Rent freeze
Nearly half of New York City's apartments are
In Boston, even the first part feels like a pipe dream.
Massachusetts voters narrowly
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Demonstrators marched for affordable housing and rent control in front of Boston City Hall on May 20.
Danielle Parhizkaran/Globe Staff
Wu's plan
In a statement, Wu said she still supports the plan she proposed.
'If not by home-rule petition or statewide legislation, rent stabilization could also be passed through a statewide ballot initiative,' she said.
Wu's chief challenger in the mayoral race, Josh Kraft,
'Josh's plan is far superior to the government-mandated approach Mayor Wu unsuccessfully tried to enact in Boston, and to what Mamdani is proposing in New York City,' a Kraft campaign spokesperson said in a statement.
Surtax on high earners
Back in 2022,
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Mamdani
If his bid goes anything like it did in Massachusetts, it will be a
Voters walked past a sign saying "Yes on 1," advocating for the Fair Share Amendment, outside an East Boston polling location in 2022.
Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff
In Massachusetts, proponents argue the surcharge
Opponents of the surtax say it's
No-cost child care
In Boston, as in New York,
The Wu and Healey administrations have also made efforts to shore up the
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Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey high-fived students as she visited a pre-K classroom in Malden in January 2024.
Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff
Wu, who
But demand still outstrips supply. New state vouchers for child care subsidies for income-eligible families, for example,
City-owned grocery stores
Perhaps Mamdani's
While no such retail store exists in Massachusetts, there is a government-operated commissary
One local grocery venture that has received a fair share of public financial support is Boston Public Market. The downtown marketplace, operated by a nonprofit organization,
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The crowd at the Boston Public Market on its opening day in 2015.
Pat Greenhouse
The market is more upscale, rather than a discount supermarket. But according to its
Neither of Boston's mayoral candidates support Mamdani's proposal. Wu said 'there are more effective ways for us to partner with and coordinate organizations and businesses in addressing food insecurity,' pointing to
The Kraft campaign spokesperson put it more bluntly: 'Josh thinks having city government-run grocery stores in Boston is a dumb idea.'
Dana Gerber can be reached at
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The Hill
3 hours ago
- The Hill
Do Cuomo and Adams secretly want Mamdani to win?
I have worked with a number of very successful candidates and politicians. The one really invaluable skill they all had in common was that they understood basic math. They knew that two plus two often leads to victory, and that two minus one — or three — usually leads to defeat. Addition, subtraction, division. Simple. Unless, to paraphrase a line from 'Top Gun,' 'Your ego is writing checks your body can't cash.' There is no doubt that many New York City residents — as well as countless people around the country and world who now fear for that iconic city's future — have been shaken by a recent Siena College poll showing that far-left socialist Zohran Mamdani leads the race to become the next mayor by 19 points over his next-closest opponent, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Behind them are Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa with 12 percent and incumbent Mayor Eric Adams with 7 percent. Mamdani has the gift of basic math working massively in his favor. In this particular case, division. Without doing a thing, the cliché 'divide and conquer' has been the most important campaign strategy in his quiver. Other than offering the socialist panacea of 'a chicken in every pot' — free stuff to constituents who really know nothing about him — it is the one factor that may make him the next mayor of New York. Mamdani doesn't have to pay for it, focus-group it or expend any political capital. He simply has to sit back and prepare as the respective egos of Cuomo and Adams hand him the keys to Gracie Mansion — and the four years he will need to bring New York City to its knees. Why? Because Cuomo and Adams are now engaged in an ego-fueled blinking contest to see who might exit the race first. That, or they secretly want Mamdani to win. Either way, it's Mamdani with the Cheshire Cat-like smile. This is proving to be an interesting election in that the winning candidate will be the one least despised by the voters. Each of the four major candidates have high negatives and elicit harsh criticism from various blocks of voters. Sadly, forgotten in this high-profile contest between dueling egos are the millions of people in the city who are either barely getting by or suffering in the throes of dysfunction and despair — ironically enough, often caused by the failed policies of previous ego-driven mayors. Many of the residents of New York City who are struggling daily with poverty, crime and lack of education for their children are Black or minority. Ah, but we are seemingly not allowed to talk about that. Many on the left — with a huge assist from Democratic leadership, the media, academia and teachers unions — have gamed it so if you even try to point out the failings of a major American city such as New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Washington or Baltimore and who is running it, you risk being labeled a racist, bigot or a misogynist. I don't care what a mayor looks like or how they identify sexually. The only thing I care about is the suffering of millions of constituents. Life for those people is beyond brutal in many cases — an irrefutable fact you almost never hear about, because that would run counter to the various narratives of the left's noise machine. For example, let's look at another major American city that is a poster child for failure, massive dysfunction and turning its back on those most in need: Chicago. A city in which, as I have pointed out in the past, more than 40,000 men, women and children — almost all minority and from the inner city — have been murdered over the last six decades. Extrapolate that number across multiple American inner cities and you have our nation's greatest failing … ever. Except, 'shhhh,' once again, you are not supposed to talk about it. New York City is Chicago on steroids. It has multiple — fixable — problems and life-crushing emergencies across the five boroughs. Unfortunately for those most at-risk inhabitants, many of the people who can help them are entitled elites who exist in bubbles of luxury and safety floating far above the 'unwashed masses' of the city. Two of those elites are Cuomo and Adams. To them, it seems as if the title of 'mayor' is yet one more trophy they can amass, serving either as a potential stepping stone to higher office or to private sector appointments and riches once the last term is complete. In the meantime, those millions of desperately hurting New Yorkers ignored by the elites had better prepare themselves. If (when) Mamdani wins, things will get much worse. 'Free stuff' is the false promise to grab the vote of those New Yorkers. Once Mamdani secures that vote, it will only be about what is best for him and his socialist movement going forward. Those at-risk residents won't even be a fleeting memory.
New York Post
4 hours ago
- New York Post
NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani's financial disclosure filings filled with discrepancies
Socialist NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani has scored nearly $10 million in public matching funds for his campaign, despite having serious discrepancies in his mandatory financial disclosure filings, The Post has learned. Mamdani, the frontrunner heading into November's general election, claimed in a recent filing to the city's Conflicts of Interest Board reporting his finances for last year that he has owned vacant land in Jinja, Uganda, valued at $100,000 to $250,000 since March 14, 2016, records show. Mamdani, who earns $131,000 annually as a Queens-based state assemblyman, also noted owning interest in two stocks valued at a combined $5,000 to $55,000 – MiTec and PBC – and having a retirement plan worth another $1,000 to $5,000. Advertisement 3 Mamdani received his matching funds despite the apparent discrepancy in his financial disclosure forms. Janet Mayer/ However, in annual financial disclosure statements for 2020 through 2024 filed with the state Legislative Ethics Commission, Mamdani, 33, said he took full ownership of the Uganda site four years earlier – in 2012. He also didn't list any stocks, instead claiming the only the securities he owned were valued at less than $2,000 from a retirement plan with the social-justice organization Chhaya where he worked in 2019. Advertisement The revelation that Mamdani's state filings contradict his city filings come while two of his top competitors, Mayor Eric Adams and ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo, have been denied millions of dollars in matching funds by the city's Campaign Finance Board after being flagged for various violations. 'Every time you scratch the surface with this guy, more red flags emerge,' said defense lawyer Jim Walden, who is running for mayor as an Independent. 'Here, the obvious concern is that he is understating his wealth. He should come clean. If he can't be honest, add that to the growing list of disqualifiers.' A rep for the Campaign Finance Board declined comment. Advertisement Lisa Partelow Reid, executive director of the state Legislative Ethics Commission, said elected officials who knowingly make false statements to the commission could face fines of up to $40,000. If amendments are needed 'the assumption' typically is 'an inadvertent error' occurred, she said. 3 Mayor Adams was not given matching funds for his reelection campaign. Derek French/SOPA Images/Shutterstock There are no records of Mamdani amending his filings. Reid declined to discuss Mamdani repeating the same information on his stocks and land ownership in five straight annual state filings – but then providing different information in his COIB filing. Advertisement 3 Heavy security and phone jammers marked a recent three-day celebration at Mamdani's Ugandan compound. New York Post COIB Executive Director Carolyn Miller deferred questions about matching funds to the Campaign Finance Board but said 'filers regularly and routinely amend their annual disclosure reports to resolve discrepancies.' Hank Sheinkopf, a longtime Democratic political consultant, questioned whether the state and city entities — which are designed to be independent and apolitical — are ignoring Mamdani's discrepancies because they're worried about being accused of Islamophobia. 'It's hypocritical at best,' he said. Mamdani did not return messages. Additional reporting by Gabrielle Fahmy
New York Post
5 hours ago
- New York Post
Cuban-born biotech honcho enters NYC mayoral race seeking to upset Mamdani: ‘I hate socialism'
He's the anti-Mamdani. A Cuban-born biotech entrepreneur decided to make a longshot bid for NYC mayor because he loathes the radical left-wing ideas pushed by socialist frontrunner Zohran Mamdani — and saw just how dangerous they are in real life, he told The Post. 'I was raised in a socialist communist society, so I am the antithesis of Zohran Mamdani's ideology,' declared Joseph Hernandez. 'In fact, he's a motivator for me to fight in this race. I despise socialism. I am a believer in the American dream. I'm a believer in capitalism. It's not perfect, but it's lifted more people out of poverty than any other ideology,' he said. 3 Hernandez dismissed the notion his run for mayor would split votes between those seeking an alternative to the current frontrunner, socialist Zohran Mamdani Hernandez for NYC / Facebook Hernandez — a 52-year-old Upper East Side resident who immigrated to the U.S. at the age of seven with his family to escape Fidel Castro's communist rule — entered the race as an independent just over a month ago after collecting enough signatures to get on the November ballot. 'I doing this because I love the city and want to make it better,' Hernandez said. 'I don't have baggage like [many of the other candidates]. I'm a businessman; I'm logical; I know technology; and know how to structure budgets.' The registered Republican heads Manhattan-based healthcare and technology investment firm Blue Water Venture Partners If elected, he's vowed to hire 10,000 new cops along with other public safety improvements; convert unused office space into affordable housing and use artificial intelligence to improve city services. 3 Cuomo is a registered Democrat running for mayor of New York City as an independent. SARAH YENESEL/EPA/Shutterstock 3 Socialist Mamdani remains the candidate to beat in this year's race for City Hall. Stephen Yang for the New York Post The huge underdog joins a crowded field that besides Mamdani, the Democratic nominee, includes Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa, Mayor Eric Adams, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and defense lawyer Jim Walden. Adams and Cuomo are registered Dems running as independents; Walden is a registered Independent. Hernandez said he's raised roughly $300,000 since entering the campaign in late June and has already secured an endorsement from the Bodega and Small Business Group, which vehemently opposes Mamdani's proposal to create Soviet-style, city-run supermarkets. A Sienna poll this week showed Mamdani, the Democratic nominee, had 44% of the vote, following by former Gov. Andrew Cuomo with 25%, Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa with 12% and Mayor Eric Adams with 7%. The remaining 12% support another candidate or are undecided. Hernandez rejected the idea that he might be splitting votes even further among moderates and conservatives seeking an alternative to Mamdani– and thereby increasing the socialist's chances of winning. 'I'm doing this because I live in the city and I think it's so spinning out of control – and I think I'm the most qualified candidate,' he said. 'I'm a businessman, I'm logical, I know technology. And I know how to structure budgets.'
