Latest news with #PoliticalEndorsement
Fox News
16-07-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
AOC, Sanders welcome Mamdani to DC for his Capitol Hill debut, urging reluctant Dems to 'get to know him'
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., pulled back the curtain on New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani's "productive" meeting with Democratic lawmakers in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday. When asked by Fox News' Chad Pergram how Mamdani's message resonated with Democrats during a "Communication and Organizing Skillshare Breakfast," Ocasio-Cortez said the Democratic nominee shared critical insights about how to "level up all of our games in terms of technique." The progressive superstar urged the outstanding Mamdani skeptics to "get to know him" before "making assessments from what you may see on television." She applauded her caucus for "showing up in good faith" to give him a fair chance and demonstrating a "willingness to listen and make assessments for themselves." But when a reporter asked if House Minority Leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., would formally endorse Mamdani, Ocasio-Cortez said she wouldn't speak to any individual's endorsement, or lack thereof. Jeffries and Senate Minority Leader Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., have confirmed plans to meet with Mamdani in New York City later this week, but both top Democratic leaders from New York have yet to endorse the self-described Democratic socialist candidate. "We want Democrats to be successful," Ocasio-Cortez told reporters. "We want Democrats to win. As the Democratic nominee for New York City, Zohran Mamdani is overwhelmingly favored to win the general election. And in doing so, we want the next mayor of New York City, a Democrat, to be as successful as possible." "Squad" member Ocasio-Cortez has dominated headlines since she arrived on the political scene in 2018, unseating a longtime Democratic incumbent. The New Yorker said she shared with Mamdani that "the way sometimes people are painted in the media doesn't always align with who we really are as individuals." "I think that when people get to know him as a person, when people get to know us as real people, what they find kind of surprises them," Ocasio-Cortez explained. And across Capitol Hill on Wednesday afternoon, Sen. Bernie Sanders, the longtime progressive champion, posed for friendly photos with Mamdani outside an office building on the Hill. Like Ocasio-Cortez, Sanders endorsed Mamdani ahead of his Democratic primary win last month. "Had a great meeting with @ZohranKMamdan and am deeply impressed by the grassroots campaign he is running," Sanders said on X. "The Oligarchs are prepared to undermine democracy & spend tens of millions to buy the election for his opponents. We will not allow that to happen. Stand with Zohran." Mamdani, in turn, said it was an "absolute honor to meet with one of my heroes and the champion for working people across our country." He called Sanders "Brooklyn through and through," noting that the Vermont senator was born and raised there. Rep. Tom Suozzi, D-N.Y., said he would not attend Ocasio-Cortez's breakfast on Wednesday. Suozzi, a moderate, has emerged as a vocal opponent of Mamdani's campaign among New York Democrats. Rep. Adriano Espaillat, D-N.Y., endorsed Mamdani last week after backing former Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the primary. Cuomo announced on Monday his decision to stay in the mayoral race as an independent. Several Democratic leaders were spotted leaving breakfast on Wednesday morning, which took place in Washington's Navy Yard neighborhood after a last-minute location change. While leaving the breakfast, longtime Democratic Rep. Jerry Nadler of New York, who has endorsed Mamdani, was asked by Fox News if Schumer and Jeffries would eventually endorse the mayoral nominee. He replied that he "would assume so in time." But Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Mich., attended the breakfast meeting and told reporters as she departed that Mamdani had successfully utilized social media on the campaign trail. Dingell also blamed the media for what she said was rhetoric that Democrats are moving towards socialism. A top progressive House member, Rep. Pramila Jayapal of Washington state, told reporters as she left the meeting that Mamdani was "inspiring." Rep. Ro Khanna of California, another leading progressive lawmaker who is also considered a potential 2028 Democratic presidential contender, told reporters on his way out that Mamdani was "very impressive." Rep. Nydia Velázquez, a Democrat from New York who has endorsed Mamdani, told reporters as she left the meeting that "it is just beautiful to have someone who is so authentic, you know, money cannot buy that. And, we had a great conversation." It appeared Mamdani didn't delve into specifics regarding the far-left agenda he's hoping to enact if he's elected New York City mayor, and instead spotlighted his effective campaign trail messaging, which focused on the crucial issue of affordability. Democratic Rep. Luz Rivas of California told reporters upon leaving the meeting that "it was just more how he was getting that message out," when asked what Mamdani discussed.
CBS News
16-07-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Zohran Mamdani visiting democrats in Washington, D.C., sources say
New York City Democratic mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani is visiting Washington, D.C. on Wednesday morning. Sources tell CBS News New York that Mamdani is in the nation's capital to seek the support of democrats and meet with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who endorsed him in the primary. At the time, Ocasio-Cortez said the democratic socialist had "demonstrated a real ability to put together a coalition of working-class New Yorkers that is strongest to lead the pack." Sen. Bernie Sanders followed suit and came forward to endorse Mamdani in the primary, as well. Mandani went on to win the Democratic primary in a stunning victory over former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and nine other candidates. Cuomo officially relaunched his candidacy this week and asked the other independent candidates to drop out if they are not in the lead come September. "I don't want to be part of a suicide mission," Cuomo told CBS News New York's political reporter Marcia Kramer in an interview Tuesday. "If Adams is a stronger candidate, I'm not going to be a spoiler and I'll defer. I'm not going to be a reason that this assemblyman became mayor of the city of New York." A spokesperson for incumbent Mayor Eric Adams, who is also running as an independent, brushed off the comments, saying he has no interest in stepping aside. The general election is set for Tuesday, Nov. 4, when Mamdani, Cuomo and Adams will face Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa and independent candidate Jim Walden. Marcia Kramer contributed to this report.
The Guardian
06-06-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Andrew Cuomo's bid for New York City mayor endorsed by rival in surprise turn
Andrew Cuomo's bid to become New York City's mayor received a surprising boost on Friday when one of his rivals, Queens state senator Jessica Ramos, endorsed the former governor after having previously questioned his mental acuity and describing him as a bully with a record of sexual misconduct allegations. Ramos punctuated her stunning U-turn with a surprise appearance at a campaign rally in Manhattan, where she hugged Cuomo and said she believed he was 'the one best positioned right now to protect this city'. 'We need someone in City Hall who knows how to hold the line and deliver under pressure,' Ramos said in a statement shared on Cuomo's campaign website, just weeks after she claimed his 'mental acuity is in decline'. Ramos also said she had worked with Cuomo 'to raise wages, protect immigrant workers, and pass major labor reforms', and she added that she believed he could 'go toe-to-toe' with the Donald Trump administration 'when it counts'. The endorsement from Ramos comes days after the first the New York City Democratic mayoral primary debate, during which Cuomo faced attacks over his gubernatorial administration's handling of nursing home deaths during the Covid-19 pandemic and sexual harassment allegations against him that prompted his resignation. In 2021, Ramos was one of the first Democratic lawmakers to call for Cuomo to resign over those sexual harassment allegations, which he has denied. An investigation by the state attorney general found he sexually harassed nearly a dozen women – most of whom worked for him – and also retaliated after some made complaints. Ramos in March accused Cuomo's mayoral run of being a 'vanity comeback tour'. She said Cuomo 'brings nothing to this race but baggage'. 'Hard pass on Andrew,' she wrote. Also in March, she called Cuomo 'a corrupt bully with a record of alleged sexual misconduct'. As recently as Wednesday, Ramos said she wished she 'lived in a city where voters cared about women getting harassed. 'We talk about it all the time, but I'm not running about Andrew Cuomo's record,' she told Politico. 'I'm running on my own record.' Ramos's allies on the progressive left greeted her endorsement of Cuomo with dismay – including several organizations that had backed her mayoral candidacy. The Working Families party said it was 'sad and disappointed' by Ramos's 'desperate' decision. The New York City council member Chi Ossé said he was 'hurt' by Ramos's announcement. 'I've always respected her for the work she's done for our city and state,' Ossé wrote on X. 'To see her throw of all her values away and betray the [New Yorkers] she's been fighting for is heartbreaking and disgusting.' The actor Cynthia Nixon, who ran and lost to Cuomo in the 2018 Democratic primary, said on X that she was 'choosing to remember the Jessica Ramos' who 'supported the women who were sexually harassed, remembered the people Cuomo sent to die in nursing homes [and] always called out Cuomo's corruption, mismanagement [and] lies'. 'I'll miss that Ramos,' Nixon added. 'Where did she go?' Ramos said her decision to back Cuomo is what is known as a cross-endorsement, for she does not intend to drop out of the race. Cuomo, meanwhile, told reporters on Friday he would not be returning the favor and endorsing Ramos. However, in a statement, Cuomo said: 'Senator Ramos is a fighter for working New Yorkers, and we are all better off for her leadership. 'Senator Ramos and I are both … tough and protective of our families and neighbors, and by extension we are protective of all New Yorkers.' The closely watched mayoral race in heavily Democratic New York City has largely settled into a two-way fight between Cuomo, the current frontrunner, and the democratic socialist candidate Zohran Mamdani. The incumbent Eric Adams is running as an independent. On Thursday, Mamdani received the prominent endorsement of US congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who told New York Times that Mamdani 'demonstrated a real ability on the ground to put together a coalition of working-class New Yorkers that is strongest to lead the pack'. Ocasio-Cortez ranked five candidates – but left Ramos off her slate.
New York Times
02-06-2025
- Business
- New York Times
In the Age of Trump, National Politics Dominate a Republican Primary
When Donald J. Trump was in the thick of his first campaign for the White House, Jack Ciattarelli, then a Republican state assemblyman mulling a run for governor of New Jersey, called the soon-to-be commander in chief a 'charlatan' who was 'out of step with American values.' 'Sitting silently and allowing him to embarrass our country is unacceptable,' Mr. Ciattarelli said in a 2015 statement. 'He is not fit to be president of the United States.' Ten years later, Mr. Ciattarelli, the front-runner in the June 10 Republican primary for governor, has pivoted. He has praised Mr. Trump during the campaign and last month earned the president's coveted endorsement. Like many other Republican politicians across the country, including the vice president, JD Vance, Mr. Ciattarelli has worked to paper over his past criticism of the president as Mr. Trump has grown in popularity. That effort to appeal to the G.O.P.'s conservative base is seen more as a reflection of the realities of party primaries at a polarized moment in history than as a fundamental realignment of the Republican Party in New Jersey, a left-leaning state with a high percentage of affluent suburban voters. 'It's indicative of where Republicans are, but it's also indicative of where a lot of voters are,' said Peter J. McDonough Jr., a retired political strategist and former aide to Christine Todd Whitman, a Republican who was governor of New Jersey in the 1990s. 'People are mad. People are dissatisfied — whether they're Bernie Sanders or Trump voters.' Where Do the Candidates for New Jersey Governor Stand on the Issues? The New York Times sent a wide-ranging survey to candidates for governor of New Jersey about housing, immigration, abortion, transit, affordability, schools and climate. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
