Five Lessons From Zohran Mamdani S Stunning Nyc Victory

Bonisiwe Shabane

-Dec 27, 2025, 5:29 PM

five lessons from zohran mamdani s stunning nyc victory

THIS IS AN EXPANDED VERSION OF JACK MAYCOCK’S PIECE IN PR WEEK The most talked-about mayoral election in generations has come to a close: Zohran Mamdani, who polled at just 9% in the Democratic primary in January, will be the next mayor of New York. It can’t be overstated how exceptional it is for a self-declared “democratic socialist” to win in the hub of 20th-century capitalism. New York might be more socially liberal than other parts of the US, but make no mistake: it’s no egalitarian utopia. So how did a 34-year-old Muslim democratic socialist go from political outsider to mayor of the richest city in the world? And can it be replicated, and what can progressive leaders across civil society take from this?

Here are five lessons from one of the best political campaigns of the 21st century. For any outsider candidate, the electorate needs to understand the reason for your candidacy – and fast. In a remarkable upset, progressive State Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani defeated former Governor Andrew Cuomo in New York City’s Democratic mayoral primary. Early polls showed Mamdani starting his campaign with around 1% support. Just six weeks before the June 24 election, his support was only at 11%, while Cuomo led with 49%. Three separate polls, conducted by Yale/YouGov, Marist College, and the Manhattan Institute within two weeks of the election, still showed Cuomo ahead by 12 points or more.

Mamdani won the primary as the clear leader with 56% of the votes, totaling 545,334 votes. His campaign claimed that this was “the most votes any Democratic primary candidate has received in 36 years.” Cuomo received 44%, or 428,530 votes. Although NYC is the largest city in the U.S., this election was not on a national stage. Jared Leopold, a Democratic strategist, summarized it well: “Communicating in a Democratic primary in New York City is very different from communicating in a swing district in Iowa.” For example, the white population makes... Nevertheless, a quick look at his initial support and his victory sharply contrasts with Vice President Kamala Harris’s initial support and loss. In roughly the same amount of time before Election Day for both Harris and Mamdani, Harris was 2% behind Donald Trump according to a New York Times/Siena College poll, and Mamdani was 38% behind...

Mamdani won despite performing poorly with low-income voters, losing the majority of Black voters and criticizing Israel while showing sympathy for the Gaza Palestinians. All three conditions should have led to a Democratic candidate losing. Zohran Mamdani’s victory in the New York City Mayoral race has inspired left wing campaigners around the world. Explore these resources to find out more about the campaign and its lessons. Got great analysis to share? Let the Commons librarians know.

Mar Garcia Sanz & Viktor Mák, European Center for Digital Action Mamdani’s victory is a message to the world that the progressive movement can reclaim agency, build trust, and win even in the most unlikely places. Mamdani’s campaign stood out for two intertwined reasons: authenticity and organization. Zohran Mamdani’s victory in the Democratic primary for New York City mayor was a massive, earth-shaking upset. When he announced his campaign last October, insiders scoffed: “Could this pro-Palestinian socialist really be NYC’s next mayor?” ran the headline at City & State. For Politico’s New York Playbook, he was little more than “a longshot,” whose presence in the race might damage established progressives like Brad Lander or Jessica Ramos.

Less than a month ago, betting markets gave him a 6 percent chance of defeating the heavy favorite Andrew Cuomo. Mamdani won anyway — not by eking it out in the seventh round of ranked-choice voting but topping Cuomo among first-choice ballots and claiming outright victory on election night. His triumph sends a clear message: a bold populist campaign and a laser-like focus on economic issues can break through to voters, even when insiders, billionaires, and the party establishment line up in opposition. Mamdani’s stunning victory offers some vivid lessons for left-wing politics, both in New York City and beyond. For progressives, the race was a strong vindication of the economic-populist strategy we have long advocated in our work at the Center for Working-Class Politics (CWCP). As CWCP research associates Matt Karp and Dustin Guastella wrote in a 2021 Guardian article, to win, Democrats must “embrace bread and butter economic issues.” And unlike many other progressive candidates over the last...

His campaign was highly disciplined, with a tight focus on housing, transportation, wages, and the everyday cost of living. That message reached not just core progressive constituencies, but many working-class New Yorkers, who have traditionally shied away from progressive challengers or sat out Democratic primaries altogether. Crucially, Mamdani took a pragmatic approach on issues that have tripped up many other left challengers. He distanced himself from “defund the police” rhetoric without disowning public safety reform, and avoided activist jargon that can turn off more moderate or apolitical voters. The result was a campaign that resonated in places where earlier progressives had faltered. Mamdani outperformed previous left-liberal candidates in many working-class neighborhoods, and his platform’s emphasis on cost-of-living issues likely helped bring low-frequency voters off the sidelines.

Indeed, turnout surpassed one million — a higher total than any of the past six mayoral primaries. Mamdani’s economics-focused, ideologically pragmatic approach is especially important because low-frequency Democratic voters tend to be both less ideologically progressive and more economically precarious than consistent voters. Mamdani’s apparent success in mobilizing many of these voters suggests that an economics-first message can help progressives expand the electorate beyond the usual suspects. On November 5, 2025, New York City witnessed a historic moment as 34-year-old Zohran Mamdani, a democratic socialist and proud Muslim, was elected as the city's new mayor—the youngest in over a century. His victory is not merely a local triumph but a potential bellwether for the Democratic Party as it faces unprecedented challenges. Just months prior, Mamdani was a little-known figure, polling at less than 1%.

His rise was meteoric, culminating in garnering more votes than any candidate since 1969, surpassing even Michael Bloomberg's previous totals. What factors catalyzed this remarkable turnaround? Mamdani's success, while not necessarily indicative of a nationwide trend, signifies a shift in political alliances. He united otherwise disparate groups—the working, middle, and upper-middle classes—against a backdrop of increasing economic inequality and political disillusionment. This emergent coalition reflects a growing demand for accountability from those in power. “This city is your city, and this democracy is yours, too,” Mamdani declared on election night, signifying a newfound ownership of civic engagement among New Yorkers.

Despite his victory, skepticism looms over Mamdani's progressive agenda. Critics have framed his proposals as dangerously radical, despite many being adaptations of prior initiatives from former mayors. Notably, his plans to reform the education system and address rent stabilization show a blend of progressive values tempered with pragmatic governance. In a blow to the Democratic Party establishment, Zohran Mamdani, a 33-year-old democratic socialist and a state assemblyman from Queens, all but secured a victory in the New York Democratic mayoral primary on Tuesday. (The race may not be called until next week due to ranked choice voting procedures, but his main competitor, former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, has already conceded.)

There are a number of factors that explain Mamdani’s decisive lead. He radiates charisma that even his rivals can’t help but comment on. He uses social media with adroitness not seen perhaps since Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s first run for Congress. He had a jaw-dropping ground game, an army of happy warriors who swarmed the city canvassing for months and helped turn him from a little-known lawmaker in New York into a candidate with national... Mamdani’s socialism is key to understanding his policy ideas — and their appeal.

But none of this would have come together had it not been for Mamdani’s central vision: a campaign laser-focused on the “crisis of affordability” in New York City and driven by hugely ambitious policy... Mamdani has not yet won the general election, but his insurgent campaign still has lessons for a party that has failed to find its voice on economic policy at a time of plummeting trust... As establishment Democrats are casting about for ways to restore their tattered brand, Mamdani is showing how the left can make economic populism the centerpiece of political campaigns and wrest it back from the... But it requires the willingness to be seen as polarizing, and the confidence to try to persuade the electorate.

Five Lessons From Zohran Mamdani S Stunning Nyc Victory

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