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New York Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- New York Times
Mamdani Victory Could Represent Expansion of the Left's Influence
When Zohran Mamdani catapulted to a stunning victory in New York City's Democratic mayoral primary, the triumph seemed a coming-of-age moment for the Democratic Socialists of America. The group formed the backbone of Mr. Mamdani's canvassing operation and played an essential role in pushing the nation's largest city to embrace an unwavering progressive campaign agenda. But for Mr. Mamdani to get elected in November, he may need to win over segments of the city's business class, or at least persuade them that he intends no harm. Some of that effort has already been on display, creating some discomfort among his core supporters on the left. Last week, Mr. Mamdani, a state assemblyman and a democratic socialist, met separately with skeptical members of the Partnership for New York City and with Black business executives, who grilled him over his socialist economic agenda and challenged him over some of his stances opposing the wealthy and supporting Palestinian causes. Billionaires shouldn't exist? Mr. Mamdani walked that back. A rent freeze for stabilized units? Yes, but it was a policy he might revisit after four years. His refusal to repudiate the term 'globalize the intifada?' That, too, came under some revision. For now, D.S.A. leaders and others on the left say that Mr. Mamdani has earned their trust and deserves a fair amount of latitude. They recognize that the best way to push their agenda is to have a powerful emissary like Mr. Mamdani leading the nation's largest city. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
CNN
17-07-2025
- Politics
- CNN
Some of Mamdani's far-left allies want to primary Hakeem Jeffries and other NYC Democrats
Democratic socialists in New York City emboldened by Zohran Mamdani's mayoral primary win are warning that they may go after five House incumbents next — and Hakeem Jeffries, the minority leader at the top of their list, is daring them to try. Jeffries' political operation even has a nickname for those talking up threats to the House minority leader back home: 'Team Gentrification.' That phrase reflects that Mamdani turned out young progressives who, according to unofficial election data, were largely Whiter and wealthier as a whole than the longtime residents of the districts represented by Jeffries and others being targeted. But it also speaks to the resentment many Democratic politicians in the nation's largest city — and in places around the country that aren't as deep-blue as New York — have at being told by Mamdani supporters there's a new reality that they now need to adapt to, and quickly. Mamdani's allies, notably key leaders of the Democratic Socialists of America, are talking about running primary challengers against Jeffries and several other incumbents, including Reps. Ritchie Torres, Jerry Nadler, Dan Goldman and Yvette Clarke. Ashik Siddique, a national DSA co-chair, pointed out that Mamdani himself got his start organizing for a Palestinian pastor running for a Brooklyn city council seat in 2017. Mamdani's win, Siddique said, 'feels full circle,' and for future races, 'it's really proof of concept.' In all but Torres' district, Mamdani and city comptroller Brad Lander, who cross-endorsed each together in the ranked-choice mayoral primary, got more votes combined than Cuomo in the initial round of voting, according to unofficial results released on election night. Those results don't yet reflect who primary voters ranked below their first choices. Jasmine Gripper, the co-chair of the local Working Families Party, which has been eagerly re-energized by Mamdani's win after years of flagging, also suggested some lawmakers could be newly vulnerable to primary challenges. 'If you are a mismatch, that does make you vulnerable to someone saying, 'Maybe I'm a better match,'' she said. At least so far, Mamdani is not getting in his allies' way. Asked whether Mamdani thinks those House incumbent challenges should happen — of if he'd make any moves to stop them — his press secretary told CNN he was declining to comment. The members of Congress themselves and close advisers say they all have the community ties, political operations and resources to fend off whatever may come at them. They diligently say that anyone can run in a democracy, but chuckle or roll their eyes at hearing of lines like Mamdani ally Bronx state senator Gustavo Rivera saying, 'My colleagues in Congress that stood against us, they might have to watch out.' If Mamdani wins, they say, he'll have a hard enough time running the city without his ranks going to war with the city's congressional delegation. They're expecting him to keep the peace, especially in a year when they're trying to win the majority in competitive districts far from the Big Apple where democratic socialism has come off more an imposition than an inspiration. Don't go to war with them or mistake them for Cuomo, they say, or even, in a phrase Jeffries often returns to, expect them to 'bend the knee' as they weigh whether to endorse Mamdani. Jeffries will make an endorsement decision after he meets with the candidate in person next week. And a top Jeffries adviser this week issued a pointed warning: Target the House minority leader and he won't just beat them; he'll respond by going after the democratic socialists from Brooklyn elected to the state legislature, whose primaries would be on the same day next year. 'Leader Hakeem Jeffries is focused on taking back the House from the MAGA extremists who just ripped health care away from millions of Americans,' Jeffries senior adviser André Richardson told CNN. 'However, if Team Gentrification wants a primary fight, our response will be forceful and unrelenting. We will teach them and all of their incumbents a painful lesson on June 23, 2026.' Asked about critics threatening a primary challenge, Jeffries told CNN's Wolf Blitzer on Wednesday that he had 'no idea what these people are talking about.' 'We are going to continue to focus our efforts … on pushing back against the extremism that has been unleashed on the American people,' Jeffries said. 'It shouldn't be too difficult for some people to figure out who the problem is in the United States of America.' Jeffries has spent years daring those he tends to dismiss as poser progressives to try to take him on. The last time he faced a challenge from a socialist — in the 2012 primary for his first election against a longtime city councilman — he got 71% of the vote. He's only done better since. Last week, Jeffries held together every member of his conference against Trump's sweeping agenda bill, then topped off that opposition with a nearly nine-hour speech. But he has for years been tagged by the city's far left as a moderate. Opponents like to point to his fundraising as evidence, calling him a corporate Democrat. 'His leadership has left a vacuum that organizations like DSA are filling. I think that is more important right now,' New York City's Democratic Socialists of America chapter co-chair Gustavo Gordillo told CNN. 'To me it often seems like he is the one picking the fight with the left, and I think he should focus on fighting the right.' State Sen. Jabari Brisport, a democratic socialist who represents some of the same parts of Brooklyn as Jeffries, said his congressman is 'rapidly growing out of touch with an insurgent and growing progressive base within his own district that he should pay more attention to.' Mamdani won roughly 46% of the first-round primary vote in Jeffries' congressional district compared to the nearly 38% carried by Cuomo. A challenge needs a challenger, though. Brisport ruled out a run. No one else is stepping up yet either. Rep. Greg Meeks, who endorsed Andrew Cuomo in the mayor's race, called anyone thinking of a primary against Jeffries 'foolish.' 'We are all here to combat some of the craziness that Donald Trump is doing,' Meeks said. 'The only way to do that is to win the House majority and we have an opportunity to elect a New Yorker, who would be the first African American to be the speaker of the House, which then puts a check on Donald Trump and controls everything that's on this floor.' Aides to incumbents from New York City and their colleagues privately admit to looking over their shoulders since Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez beat then-Rep. Joe Crowley in a 2018 primary. But they say they have learned their lessons. Asked if he was worried now, Rep. Adriano Espaillat, a Cuomo backer who got to Congress after challenging longtime Rep. Charlie Rangel, said simply: 'No.' So far, only one House incumbent from New York City has endorsed Mamdani since he won: Nadler, the 17-term dean of the delegation who had stuck with Scott Stringer, his old protégé, despite a campaign that never took off. People familiar with Nadler's decision-making say he wanted to be a signal to fellow Democrats but also a check on anyone considering coming at him — combined, Mamdani and Lander got almost 54% in his district according to the unofficial first-round results, compared to Cuomo's 37%. Nadler easily won a 2022 primary in a redrawn district against another incumbent, but even ardent supporters acknowledged he was struggling physically at points in that race. Nadler is now 78 and aware of rumors again circulating that his retirement is imminent, but he said he plans to run again — and 'I'll put my record against anybody in terms of progressivism.' 'I think that there's some movement for generational change, but the electorate will look at people on the merits. They're not going to get rid of everybody that's older than whatever, nor are they going to keep everybody,' he said during a break while Jeffries was delivering his record-setting speech against the Trump megabill's final passage last week. Several Nadler allies told CNN that they did not want to offend the beloved congressman by going public with their fears he might not be up to fending off a Democratic Socialists of America-driven challenge. But Nadler aides have been working with Mamdani's team to build up the new mayoral nominee's outreach into areas of Manhattan where he did not do well and among Jewish communities suspicious of the assemblyman's views on Israel and what many say has been an insufficient condemnation of antisemitism. 'He's certainly not an antisemite,' Nadler said, while adding on Mamdani's critical views of Israel, 'I think he'll have to satisfy that.' Nadler's district, which covers the Upper West and Upper East sides of Manhattan, would not be prime territory for the DSA. Most see a better fit in the Lower Manhattan and Brownstone Brooklyn district represented by Goldman, who's only in his second term. Mamdani and Lander took a combined 70% of the vote in the district, compared to Cuomo's 22%. Efforts are underway to urge Lander into a Goldman challenge, but people who know the city comptroller say he's been more focused on helping Mamdani and potentially serving in a top position in City Hall. Through a spokesperson, Goldman said his focus was on fighting Trump's cuts to the social safety net and the deployment of immigration officers across the city. 'We live in a democracy, so anyone is welcome to throw their hat in the ring,' he said. Clarke, whose district was almost evenly split between Mamdani and Cuomo, said anyone who sees what happened in the mayoral primary as the dawn of a new age in New York is getting ahead of themselves. 'I'm not saying that it didn't surprise me. I'm saying it wasn't necessarily socialist politics. It was the messenger and the message,' Clarke said. Like other members, Clarke has spoken by phone with Mamdani. The conversation went well, she said, as other members told CNN theirs did. Like the other members, she made a point of saying that Mamdani is the Democratic nominee. Like other members, she said she is still deciding whether to formally back him. The Mamdani ripple may not just be in primaries: Justin Brannan, who placed second for city comptroller on the same primary ballot that Mamdani carried, says the results have him taking another look at challenging Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, the lone Republican member from New York City, in a district covering Staten Island and Brooklyn which has trended increasingly Republican. 'Every year, whether it's the midterms or the presidential election when there's people from Manhattan chartering buses to Ohio and Pennsylvania,' Brannan told CNN. 'I'm like, 'Guys, just take the ferry to Staten Island – there's a swing district here.'' Jamaal Bowman, who beat an incumbent to win a seat stretching from the Bronx to just north of the city in 2020 only to lose it to a challenger himself in 2024, said he's now constantly getting pitched on running against Torres, a progressive who has nonetheless enraged many Mamdani supporters for both being a staunch supporter of Israel and then endorsing Cuomo. Mamdani posted some of his weakest numbers in that district, with less than 33% compared to Cuomo's 52%. Though Bowman told CNN, 'I personally don't think that that is a priority per se,' he urged his former colleagues, including those in suburban districts, to move quickly to embrace Mamdani's approach to expanding to younger and more racially diverse voters rather than still worrying about losing moderates. 'Everyone in New York has to recalibrate their stuff,' Bowman said. Several members of the congressional delegation, meanwhile, have noted privately that Mamdani never himself expressed support for former Vice President Kamala Harris when she became the Democratic presidential nominee last year. Torres declined to address on the record how he'd marshal his significant campaign fundraising and support on the ground if faced with a challenge next year. Though Torres said the mayoral primary results were enough to end his flirtation with a primary challenge of his own to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul next year, his only response to the prospect of facing a challenge for his own seat was a mocking reference to the perennial stunt candidate who received 0.1% in the mayoral primary. 'The thought of Paperboy Prince keeps me up at night,' he said. CORRECTION: This story has been updated to reflect that a key official from the Working Families Party suggested some lawmakers could be newly vulnerable to primary challenges, not that the party is talking about running primary challengers.
CNN
15-07-2025
- Politics
- CNN
Some of Mamdani's far-left allies want to primary Hakeem Jeffries and other NYC Democrats
Democratic socialists in New York City emboldened by Zohran Mamdani's mayoral primary win are warning that they may go after five House incumbents next — and Hakeem Jeffries, the minority leader at the top of their list, is daring them to try. Jeffries' political operation even has a nickname for those talking up threats to the House minority leader back home: 'Team Gentrification.' That phrase reflects that Mamdani turned out young progressives who, according to unofficial election data, were largely Whiter and wealthier as a whole than the longtime residents of the districts represented by Jeffries and others being targeted. But it also speaks to the resentment many Democratic politicians in the nation's largest city — and in places around the country that aren't as deep-blue as New York — have at being told by Mamdani supporters there's a new reality that they now need to adapt to, and quickly. Mamdani's allies, notably key leaders of the Democratic Socialists of America, are talking about running primary challengers against Jeffries and several other incumbents, including Reps. Ritchie Torres, Jerry Nadler, Dan Goldman and Yvette Clarke. Ashik Siddique, a national DSA co-chair, pointed out that Mamdani himself got his start organizing for a Palestinian pastor running for a Brooklyn city council seat in 2017. Mamdani's win, Siddique said, 'feels full circle,' and for future races, 'it's really proof of concept.' In all but Torres' district, Mamdani and city comptroller Brad Lander, who cross-endorsed each together in the ranked-choice mayoral primary, got more votes combined than Cuomo in the initial round of voting, according to unofficial results released on election night. Those results don't yet reflect who primary voters ranked below their first choices. Jasmine Gripper, the co-chair of the local Working Families Party, which has been eagerly re-energized by Mamdani's win after years of flagging, also suggested some lawmakers could be newly vulnerable to primary challenges. 'If you are a mismatch, that does make you vulnerable to someone saying, 'Maybe I'm a better match,'' she said. At least so far, Mamdani is not getting in his allies' way. Asked whether Mamdani thinks those House incumbent challenges should happen — of if he'd make any moves to stop them — his press secretary told CNN he was declining to comment. The members of Congress themselves and close advisers say they all have the community ties, political operations and resources to fend off whatever may come at them. They diligently say that anyone can run in a democracy, but chuckle or roll their eyes at hearing of lines like Mamdani ally Bronx state senator Gustavo Rivera saying, 'My colleagues in Congress that stood against us, they might have to watch out.' If Mamdani wins, they say, he'll have a hard enough time running the city without his ranks going to war with the city's congressional delegation. They're expecting him to keep the peace, especially in a year when they're trying to win the majority in competitive districts far from the Big Apple where democratic socialism has come off more an imposition than an inspiration. Don't go to war with them or mistake them for Cuomo, they say, or even, in a phrase Jeffries often returns to, expect them to 'bend the knee' as they weigh whether to endorse Mamdani. Jeffries will make an endorsement decision after he meets with the candidate in person next week. And a top Jeffries adviser this week issued a pointed warning: Target the House minority leader and he won't just beat them; he'll respond by going after the democratic socialists from Brooklyn elected to the state legislature, whose primaries would be on the same day next year. 'Leader Hakeem Jeffries is focused on taking back the House from the MAGA extremists who just ripped health care away from millions of Americans,' Jeffries senior adviser André Richardson told CNN. 'However, if Team Gentrification wants a primary fight, our response will be forceful and unrelenting. We will teach them and all of their incumbents a painful lesson on June 23, 2026.' Asked about critics threatening a primary challenge, Jeffries told CNN's Wolf Blitzer on Wednesday that he had 'no idea what these people are talking about.' 'We are going to continue to focus our efforts … on pushing back against the extremism that has been unleashed on the American people,' Jeffries said. 'It shouldn't be too difficult for some people to figure out who the problem is in the United States of America.' Jeffries has spent years daring those he tends to dismiss as poser progressives to try to take him on. The last time he faced a challenge from a socialist — in the 2012 primary for his first election against a longtime city councilman — he got 71% of the vote. He's only done better since. Last week, Jeffries held together every member of his conference against Trump's sweeping agenda bill, then topped off that opposition with a nearly nine-hour speech. But he has for years been tagged by the city's far left as a moderate. Opponents like to point to his fundraising as evidence, calling him a corporate Democrat. 'His leadership has left a vacuum that organizations like DSA are filling. I think that is more important right now,' New York City's Democratic Socialists of America chapter co-chair Gustavo Gordillo told CNN. 'To me it often seems like he is the one picking the fight with the left, and I think he should focus on fighting the right.' State Sen. Jabari Brisport, a democratic socialist who represents some of the same parts of Brooklyn as Jeffries, said his congressman is 'rapidly growing out of touch with an insurgent and growing progressive base within his own district that he should pay more attention to.' Mamdani won roughly 46% of the first-round primary vote in Jeffries' congressional district compared to the nearly 38% carried by Cuomo. A challenge needs a challenger, though. Brisport ruled out a run. No one else is stepping up yet either. Rep. Greg Meeks, who endorsed Andrew Cuomo in the mayor's race, called anyone thinking of a primary against Jeffries 'foolish.' 'We are all here to combat some of the craziness that Donald Trump is doing,' Meeks said. 'The only way to do that is to win the House majority and we have an opportunity to elect a New Yorker, who would be the first African American to be the speaker of the House, which then puts a check on Donald Trump and controls everything that's on this floor.' Aides to incumbents from New York City and their colleagues privately admit to looking over their shoulders since Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez beat then-Rep. Joe Crowley in a 2018 primary. But they say they have learned their lessons. Asked if he was worried now, Rep. Adriano Espaillat, a Cuomo backer who got to Congress after challenging longtime Rep. Charlie Rangel, said simply: 'No.' So far, only one House incumbent from New York City has endorsed Mamdani since he won: Nadler, the 17-term dean of the delegation who had stuck with Scott Stringer, his old protégé, despite a campaign that never took off. People familiar with Nadler's decision-making say he wanted to be a signal to fellow Democrats but also a check on anyone considering coming at him — combined, Mamdani and Lander got almost 54% in his district according to the unofficial first-round results, compared to Cuomo's 37%. Nadler easily won a 2022 primary in a redrawn district against another incumbent, but even ardent supporters acknowledged he was struggling physically at points in that race. Nadler is now 78 and aware of rumors again circulating that his retirement is imminent, but he said he plans to run again — and 'I'll put my record against anybody in terms of progressivism.' 'I think that there's some movement for generational change, but the electorate will look at people on the merits. They're not going to get rid of everybody that's older than whatever, nor are they going to keep everybody,' he said during a break while Jeffries was delivering his record-setting speech against the Trump megabill's final passage last week. Several Nadler allies told CNN that they did not want to offend the beloved congressman by going public with their fears he might not be up to fending off a Democratic Socialists of America-driven challenge. But Nadler aides have been working with Mamdani's team to build up the new mayoral nominee's outreach into areas of Manhattan where he did not do well and among Jewish communities suspicious of the assemblyman's views on Israel and what many say has been an insufficient condemnation of antisemitism. 'He's certainly not an antisemite,' Nadler said, while adding on Mamdani's critical views of Israel, 'I think he'll have to satisfy that.' Nadler's district, which covers the Upper West and Upper East sides of Manhattan, would not be prime territory for the DSA. Most see a better fit in the Lower Manhattan and Brownstone Brooklyn district represented by Goldman, who's only in his second term. Mamdani and Lander took a combined 70% of the vote in the district, compared to Cuomo's 22%. Efforts are underway to urge Lander into a Goldman challenge, but people who know the city comptroller say he's been more focused on helping Mamdani and potentially serving in a top position in City Hall. Through a spokesperson, Goldman said his focus was on fighting Trump's cuts to the social safety net and the deployment of immigration officers across the city. 'We live in a democracy, so anyone is welcome to throw their hat in the ring,' he said. Clarke, whose district was almost evenly split between Mamdani and Cuomo, said anyone who sees what happened in the mayoral primary as the dawn of a new age in New York is getting ahead of themselves. 'I'm not saying that it didn't surprise me. I'm saying it wasn't necessarily socialist politics. It was the messenger and the message,' Clarke said. Like other members, Clarke has spoken by phone with Mamdani. The conversation went well, she said, as other members told CNN theirs did. Like the other members, she made a point of saying that Mamdani is the Democratic nominee. Like other members, she said she is still deciding whether to formally back him. The Mamdani ripple may not just be in primaries: Justin Brannan, who placed second for city comptroller on the same primary ballot that Mamdani carried, says the results have him taking another look at challenging Rep. Nicole Malliotakis, the lone Republican member from New York City, in a district covering Staten Island and Brooklyn which has trended increasingly Republican. 'Every year, whether it's the midterms or the presidential election when there's people from Manhattan chartering buses to Ohio and Pennsylvania,' Brannan told CNN. 'I'm like, 'Guys, just take the ferry to Staten Island – there's a swing district here.'' Jamaal Bowman, who beat an incumbent to win a seat stretching from the Bronx to just north of the city in 2020 only to lose it to a challenger himself in 2024, said he's now constantly getting pitched on running against Torres, a progressive who has nonetheless enraged many Mamdani supporters for both being a staunch supporter of Israel and then endorsing Cuomo. Mamdani posted some of his weakest numbers in that district, with less than 33% compared to Cuomo's 52%. Though Bowman told CNN, 'I personally don't think that that is a priority per se,' he urged his former colleagues, including those in suburban districts, to move quickly to embrace Mamdani's approach to expanding to younger and more racially diverse voters rather than still worrying about losing moderates. 'Everyone in New York has to recalibrate their stuff,' Bowman said. Several members of the congressional delegation, meanwhile, have noted privately that Mamdani never himself expressed support for former Vice President Kamala Harris when she became the Democratic presidential nominee last year. Torres declined to address on the record how he'd marshal his significant campaign fundraising and support on the ground if faced with a challenge next year. Though Torres said the mayoral primary results were enough to end his flirtation with a primary challenge of his own to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul next year, his only response to the prospect of facing a challenge for his own seat was a mocking reference to the perennial stunt candidate who received 0.1% in the mayoral primary. 'The thought of Paperboy Prince keeps me up at night,' he said. CORRECTION: This story has been updated to reflect that a key official from the Working Families Party suggested some lawmakers could be newly vulnerable to primary challenges, not that the party is talking about running primary challengers.
Fox News
14-07-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Mamdani's failure to walk back these positions could cause reckoning in Democratic Party: 'Five-alarm warning'
Socialist New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani has rocketed to frontrunner status in the race despite roughly half a dozen far-left positions that he has declined to walk back, which could prove problematic for the Democratic Party if he's victorious. Mamdani has faced heated criticism for his support of socialist policies, perhaps most famously his 2021 remarks to a Young Democratic Socialists of America conference where he urged attendees not to compromise on goals like "seizing the means of production." "Right now, if we're talking about the cancellation of student debt, if we're talking about Medicare for all, you know, these are issues which have the groundswell of popular support across this country," Mamdani said in a video to conference goers. "But then there are also other issues that we firmly believe in, whether it's BDS or whether it is the end goal of seizing the means of production, where we do not have the same level of support at this very moment." Mamdani spokesperson Andrew Epstein told Politifact, "There is nothing in his platform or in his record regarding seizing the means of production," but Mamdani has not walked back his original statement, saying that is his "end goal." Another controversial position Mamdani has taken came in the form of a campaign policy document that explicitly calls for shifting the city's tax burden onto "richer and whiter neighborhoods." "Shift the tax burden from overtaxed homeowners in the outer boroughs to more expensive homes in richer and whiter neighborhoods," the proposal reads. "The property tax system is unbalanced because assessment levels are artificially capped, so homeowners in expensive neighborhoods pay less than their fair share." Mamdani has not explicitly walked back that policy item and has defended it in multiple interviews including on Meet the Press where he said, "That is just a description of what we see right now. It's not driven by race. It's more of an assessment of what neighborhoods are being under-taxed versus over-taxed." Mamdani has made it clear he is not a fan of capitalism, including in an interview with CNN in June. "No, I have many critiques of capitalism," he said in response to CNN's Erin Burnett asking him if he likes it. Mamdani has faced heated criticism from Jewish groups in New York City for a variety of past statements and positions dating back to his college days that are considered anti-Israel, several of which he is yet to walk back. Mamdani drew the ire of Jewish groups for a video posted in December 2024 that mocked Jewish Hanukkah traditions. "Our holidays and traditions are sacred and not for your comedic pleasure, Zohran Mamdani – this is sick," Stop Antisemitism said in response to the video, which Mamdani has not apologized for or deleted as of this publication. The self-proclaimed democratic socialist has refused multiple times to recognize Israel's right to exist as a Jewish state, and he has supported the BDS movement against Israel. "My support for BDS is consistent with my core of my politics, which is non-violence," Mamdani said when pressed on his BDS support earlier this year. BDS is described as "an international campaign to delegitimize the State of Israel as the expression of the Jewish people's right to national self-determination by isolating the country economically through consumer boycotts, business and government withdrawal of investment, and legal sanctions," according to Influence Watch. Mamdani has also refused to condemn the term "globalize the intifada" despite it widely being accepted as a term justifying violence against Jewish people. "My concern is, to start to walk down the line of language and making clear what language I believe is permissible or impermissible, takes me into a place similar to that of the president, who is looking to do those very kinds of things, putting people in jail for writing an op-ed, putting them in jail for protesting," Mamdani told NBC News earlier this year. "Ultimately, it is not language that I use. It is language, I understand there are concerns about, and what I will do is showcase my vision for the city through my words and my actions." Mamdani infuriated some in the Italian-American community, a key voting bloc in New York City, by calling for a statue of Christopher Columbus to be torn down. In its place, Mamdani suggested a statue of Sacco and Vanzetti, two anarcho-communists executed in 1927, should be erected. Mamdani has not walked back or apologized for that position. One of the most highly-talked-about controversies from Mamdani's campaign involved the revelation that he identified as "Black" and "Asian" on his college applications. Mamdani, born in Uganda to Indian parents, did not apologize for the move but said checking multiple boxes was an effort to reflect his "complex background," not to gain an edge in the competitive admissions process. Many, including a GOP lawmaker in New York City and Democratic strategist who spoke to Fox News Digital, have speculated that a Mamdani victory in November would put the Democratic Party in a tough position given the variety of positions Mamdani has not walked back along with his past support of sage injection sites, free busses, city run grocery stores, and defunding the police. "His sudden rise isn't just a crisis for Democrats — it's a five-alarm warning for every New Yorker and every American who still believes in decency, democracy, and common sense, no matter their party," NY GOP State Assemblyman Jake Blumencranz, who serves in the assembly with Mamdani, told Fox News Digital. "If this is who the left chooses to elevate, it's not just a sign they've lost their way — it's proof they've abandoned the values that once held this nation together. This isn't the future of the Democratic Party — it's the unraveling of it." Former House Judiciary Chief Counsel Julian Epstein, a Democrat, told Fox News Digital he does not believe that Mandai will win the race for mayor, but if he does, "it could be the beginning of a Cold War within the Democratic Party." "There is just no way that moderate and centrist Democrats can abide by socialism, cultural Revolution, and ever bloated welfare state driving us into bankruptcy, and alignment with goals of mid east fascist terrorists," Epstein said. "So if he wins, not only will it continue to sink the national brand of the party, it may portend the eventual break up of the party as we know it today."
New York Post
11-07-2025
- Politics
- New York Post
Outrageous advocacy for antisemitic Zohran: Letters to the Editor — July 12, 2025
The Issue: Support for antisemitic New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani. Zohran Mamdani has managed to insult multiple groups with long ties to New York City (' 'Zoh way he's not a problem,' ' July 10). Most recently, Italians were insulted by the 'candidate of all the people.' This followed numerous insults against Israel and the Jewish community. What hope does this guy offer for a united New York? It is most disturbing that many Democratic elected officials are either endorsing him or reinterpreting his bigoted remarks. Yakov Moshe Brooklyn New York City is getting ready to elect an antisemitic mayor while rabbis and Jewish politicians refuse to speak out. If Mamdani is elected, this city will be a disgrace. Meanwhile, Mayor Adams and candidates Andrew Cuomo and Curtis Sliwa are willing to sacrifice the city for their own egos rather than getting together and supporting one person to go against Mamdani. None of these men deserve respect for allowing this city to fall into the abyss. The Democratic Socialists have to be stopped; two of the others need to drop out. Mindy Rader New City As Carl Campanile points out, even Jewish Democrats are worried about a victory for this lowlife. Recent polling indicates he has a 10-point lead over Cuomo and a higher lead over Adams. It has to be possible that someone or some group could be put together to try to get Adams to drop out and support Cuomo. He has no chance of winning, but his legacy could be that he saved our city by standing on the sidelines. History will record it and New York City will forever be grateful. Rob Feuerstein Staten Island It is both inconceivable and outrageous that any Jewish politician or community leader could have considered supporting Zohran Mamdani for even a second. His primary victory should have sent shock waves and prompted condemnation by any self-respecting member of the Jewish political community. But after this debacle has shaken rational New Yorkers to the quick, we have a substantial number of Jewish politicians either endorsing the mini-monster or, even worse, pleading with him to retract or explain just one of his many anti-Israel statements. Mitchell Schwefel Barnegat, NJ If Mamdani wins, New York City will descend into chaos with rising crime and antisemitism and eventually see an economic collapse — but New York's pols will jump ship before then. If you were hoping the city, state and federal politicians would find their backbones and join together to stop the catastrophe that will ensue if Mamdani wins the mayoralty, you'd be wrong. I'd call them all cowards, but cowardice doesn't quite do service to their perfidy. Steve Heitner Middle Island Most nations would give mayoral candidate Zohran Mandani a one-way ticket to Siberia. He is a Trojan Horse —a seemingly wonderful gift to New York City's poor, but filled with hate and the chaos of the radical far-left. Who funds such a candidate? Donathan Salkaln Manhattan The fact that Mamdani could possibly be the next mayor of New York City is terrifying. His antisemitism is outrageous, and he will act out and express it all around the city. He will drive out all the large taxpayers and the city will end up in bankruptcy, a shell of what it was. Residents, especially Jewish residents, will leave in flocks to Florida. Stewart Levine Palm Beach, Fla. Every day we are given another example of why Mamdani should not be elected mayor. In addition to his pipe-dream plans and his extreme antisemitic and anti-American statements, he espouses division, not unity. Imagine such an individual participating in the traditional parades or welcoming various heads of state whom he despises. His election would be the result of voter ignorance and voter apathy. Zohran is not good for New York City and certainly not good for America. Jerry Chiappetta Monticello Want to weigh in on today's stories? Send your thoughts (along with your full name and city of residence) to letters@ Letters are subject to editing for clarity, length, accuracy, and style.
