University of Kwazulu-Natal

Lessons From The Trump Mamdani Voter Bloc By Emily Horne

Bonisiwe Shabane
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lessons from the trump mamdani voter bloc by emily horne

Greetings from rural northern Michigan, where I spent many summers as a kid and am now visiting family. Our timing couldn’t be better - we flew into a cool early summer with not too many mosquitoes or tourists (yet). In between trips to Moomers and Cherry Republic I’ve been thinking a lot about Zohran’s Mamdani’s stunning primary upset and the second MAGA era. And, like most of Substack, reading too many Takes on both. Two big things I keep waiting to see: 1.

More recognition that New York City is not the United States of America. But it’s often covered like that by national media because those journalists work/live in NYC, and so over-focus on their specific, local issues without that fairly obvious context. Mamdani ran on hyperlocal issues like MTA funding, child care costs, and rent stabilization, all of which have unique NYC applications. Any attempt to map What Mamdani Means For the Future of the Democratic Brand, even in good faith, is inherently flawed from inception. Mamdani worked hard to stay focused on local issues (in contrast to Cuomo, who obviously considered Gracie Mansion a pit stop on the way to the White House), and there are zero indications that... The lesson here seems less “Dems should embrace DSA-style socialism or policies” and more “be authentic and consistent as you hyperfocus on local issues.” Elissa Slotkin probably couldn’t win the New York mayoral primary,...

Insofar as policy matters in an election, candidates win by focusing local and having a vision that speaks to what voters feel about their daily lives.1 2. NYC went far more for Trump in 2024 than even the most MAGA-pilled pollster could have predicted, but eight months later anointed a 33-year-old Muslim socialist who wants city-run grocery stores. Huh? 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. Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2025. Donate today

Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations A week after Donald Trump won the 2024 presidential election, state Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani was on Hillside Avenue in Queens and Fordham Road in the Bronx — microphone in hand — searching for working-class... Affordability was a driving factor in their decision, according to a video the then-nascent mayoral candidate posted of his visit to the neighborhood. “Rent is expensive. Foods are going up. Utility bills are up,” one person Mamdani interviewed said.

One question related to the NYC mayoral races was answered today. The thorniest questions remain … But it’s a Friday in July, so we’ll stick with today’s news based on fresh data from the NYC mayoral election. Despite the post-primary chatter, Mamdani didn’t actually win many Trump voters. New York Times polling czar Nate Cohn has the details: While Mr. Mamdani may have appeal among some of the Democrats in New York who swung toward President Trump last November, those voters did not drive his victory: Kamala Harris had an 89-6 lead among Times/Siena...

Now the New York mayoral candidate he needs to ensure an electoral win that translates into tangible improvements in people’s lives Zohran Mamdani’s triumph in New York City’s Democratic primary represents more than just an electoral upset. It’s a confirmation that progressive politics, when pursued with discipline, vision and vigor, can resonate broadly – even in a city known for its entrenched power structures. This was no ordinary primary. Andrew Cuomo, a former governor whose political fall from grace seemed irreparable only a few years ago, had positioned himself as the overwhelming favorite. Backed by millions from corporate interests, super PACs, and billionaire donors such as Michael Bloomberg and Bill Ackman, Cuomo relied heavily on institutional inertia and top-down endorsements.

Yet Tuesday night, it became clear that this alone couldn’t carry him across the finish line. Mamdani, a 33-year-old legislator from Queens, ran a relentlessly disciplined campaign built around cost-of-living issues, zeroing in on essentials such as housing, transport, childcare and groceries. Repeated attempts to define Mamdani as merely a “Muslim socialist” with radical ideas, to force divisive identity politics to the fore, or to make the election a referendum on Israel, failed. But it wasn’t simply messaging discipline that made Mamdani successful. Mamdani has a political talent rooted in genuine charisma. His fluency with language, clarity of purpose, and authenticity allowed him to speak convincingly to voters from many different backgrounds.

He wasn’t just another activist-politician; he proved himself to be a natural leader – someone capable of communicating moral truths without sounding moralistic.

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