87 m. ago Socialist Zohran Mamdani could be New York’s next mayor. This is what the western left could learn from him | Owen Jones

He has used clear messaging to redirect anger from the disenfranchised to the economic elites. That the wealthy are worried shows it’s workingThe Zohran Mamdani phenomenon should not be happening, if received wisdom is a reliable predictor of events. He’s the 33-year-old Muslim leftist and Queens assemblyman running for the New York mayoralty with the support of the Democratic Socialists of America, and the vitriolic campaign against him suggests his momentum has caused panic in gilded circles. His chief opponent for the Democratic nomination, Andrew Cuomo, could not scream party establishment more loudly: he’s New York state’s former governor – just like his father was – and a former cabinet secretary. He married into that classic Democratic royalty, the Kennedys; his endorsements include the former president Bill Clinton; and billionaires such as Mike Bloomberg are pouring millions into his Super Pac.In another age, someone like Mamdani would have been a no-hoper. What changed was...

Politics

5 h. ago Zohran Mamdani appears to pull ahead of Andrew Cuomo, according to new poll

Progressive assemblyman may be leading the former governor in race for New York City mayor, survey findsZohran Mamdani, a Democratic candidate for mayor of New York City, has drawn level with Andrew Cuomo in the city’s primary, according to a new poll, as voters brave record-breaking temperatures to cast their ballots.Mamdani, a 33-year-old New York assemblyman, may even be leading Cuomo, the 67-year-old former governor and scion of a prominent New York political family, if the poll’s simulation of the system of ranked-choice voting is correct. Continue reading...

Politics

7 h. ago Free buses, more housing, taxing the rich: how Zohran Mamdani has gone viral in the New York mayor’s race

He was 30 points behind former governor Andrew Cuomo just months ago, but now he’s surging in the contest to lead the largest US cityZohran Mamdani trailed Andrew Cuomo, the frontrunner to be the next New York City mayor, by 30 points just a few months ago.Now, just ahead of the Democratic primary on Tuesday, the 33-year-old democratic socialist has bridged the gap with Cuomo, a politician so of the establishment that a giant bridge north of New York literally bears his last name. Continue reading...

Politics

32 h. ago Israel is playing an outsized role in a heated New York City mayoral race. Will it matter?

The race has turned into an Israel-Palestine proxy war of sorts, even as voters on both sides wish the focus remained on local issuesSpeaking from a Jerusalem bomb shelter last week as Iran and Israel exchanged fire, a New York state senator posted a video message to New York City voters: “There is a mayoral primary coming up this week where one of the candidates does not believe the Jewish state has a right to exist,” said Sam Sutton, the senator from Brooklyn. “We don’t want to be in a situation like this in America.”Sutton called on New Yorkers to elect a “great friend of the Jewish people”: Andrew Cuomo, New York’s former governor. Continue reading...

Politics

32 h. ago Israel is playing an outsized role in New York City’s mayoral race. Will it matter?

The election has turned into an Israel-Palestine proxy war of sorts, even as voters on both sides wish the focus remained on local issuesSpeaking from a Jerusalem bomb shelter last week as Iran and Israel exchanged fire, a New York state senator posted a video message to New York City voters: “There is a mayoral primary coming up this week where one of the candidates does not believe the Jewish state has a right to exist,” said Sam Sutton, the senator from Brooklyn. “We don’t want to be in a situation like this in America.”Sutton called on New Yorkers to elect a “great friend of the Jewish people”: Andrew Cuomo, New York’s former governor. Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago Why establishment Democrats still can’t stomach progressive candidates like Zohran Mamdani | Arwa Mahdawi

The anti-Mamdani mobilization is depressingly predictable, with a party that is allergic to fresh blood and new thinkingWho’s afraid of Zohran Mamdani? The answer, it would seem, is the entire establishment. The 33-year-old democratic socialist and New York City mayoral candidate has surged in the polls in recent weeks, netting endorsements not just from progressive voices like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Bernie Sanders but also his fellow candidates for the mayoralty, with Brad Lander and Michael Blake taking advantage of the ranked-choice voting system in the primary and cross-endorsing Mamdani’s campaign.With the primary just around the corner, polls have Mamdani closing the gap on Andrew Cuomo, the disgraced former governor of New York. This has spooked the establishment, which is now doing everything it can to stop Mamdani’s rise. Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago New York City might elect a truly progressive mayor – thanks to ranked

Mamdani’s campaign deserves credit for offering a clear, inspiring, progressive message. But ranked-choice voting is also helping make him competitiveWith a week left until New York’s Democratic mayoral primary, one might have thought that the former governor Andrew Cuomo would be measuring the drapes at Gracie Mansion. Real estate developers, corporations like Doordash, a smattering of billionaires and even Billy Joel have shoveled cash into his campaign, with his Super Pac spending more money than any other outside force in the city’s political history. This is on top of his entering the race with major name recognition advantage, amounting to a 20- or 30-point lead as recently as May.But according to a new poll, Zohran Mamdani – the insurgent state assemblyman and democratic socialist whom the Nation recently co-endorsed along with fellow mayoral candidate and New York City comptroller Brad Lander – has pulled ahead of Cuomo for the first time.Katrina vanden Heuvel is editorial d...

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6 d. ago Top New York official Brad Lander’s arrest is ‘fascism’, says mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani – US politics live

Arrest by masked federal agents at a New York immigration court draws immediate condemnationA memorial outside the Minnesota house chambers displays a photo of Melissa and Mark Hortman behind a table where people are dropping off flowers, notes, a hard hat, a plaid shirt. Signs in front of it read “in honor of our beloved Melissa”. On her desk, a photo and a bouquet of roses.On Monday afternoon, the skies darkened, spilling sheets of rain across the Minneapolis suburbs Melissa Hortman represented. Continue reading...

Politics

1 week ago New York mayoral candidate accuses Cuomo donors of altering photo in act of ‘blatant Islamophobia’

Zohran Mamdani says Andrew Cuomo’s Super Pac altered his image in a mailer to voters, giving him a darker beardZohran Mamdani, the democratic socialist state assemblyman waging a progressive bid to become mayor of New York City, has accused donors to the frontrunner Andrew Cuomo of “blatant Islamophobia” after a mailer from their Super Pac altered Mamdani’s image giving him a darker, bushier beard.Mamdani, 33, posted a closeup of his face as featured in the mailer from the Cuomo-backing group Fix the City alongside the original photograph from which it was drawn. In the transition, the image’s visual contrast appears to be manipulated, slightly lightening Mamdani’s skin but also giving him the appearance of a longer and significantly fuller beard. Continue reading...

Culture

1 week ago Airbnb is spending $1m on NYC mayoral race hoping it can return to the city with fewer restrictions

The ad, put out online on Monday, singles out Democrats Zohran Mamdani, Scott Stringer and Brad Lander

Economics

2 w. ago Andrew Cuomo’s bid for New York City mayor endorsed by rival in surprise turn

Jessica Ramos, a state senator, had said ex-governor’s ‘mental acuity is in decline’ and called him a bullyAndrew Cuomo’s bid to become New York City’s mayor received a surprising boost on Friday when one of his rivals, the 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”. Continue reading...

Politics

2 w. ago Another politician who demanded Cuomo resign as governor now endorses him for NYC mayor

Four years ago, Andrew Cuomo stepped down as New York’s governor amid a barrage of sexual harassment allegations and a chorus of other Democrats demanding his resignation

Politics

2 w. ago Lorde ‘pretty keen’ to ‘pull some strings’ and make Glastonbury appearance

The singer, who played the Pyramid Stage in 2022, is not named in the official line-up.

Politics

2 w. ago New York City Democratic mayoral primary debate: six key takeaways

Frontrunners Andrew Cuomo and Zohran Mamdani sparred on stage as all candidates said they’d stand up to TrumpIn the first debate of the New York City Democratic mayoral primary, nine candidates took the stage and fielded questions on housing, affordability, crime, policing, public safety, political regrets and how each candidate would handle the Trump administration if elected.The candidates included former New York governor Andrew Cuomo; democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani; the New York City council speaker, Adrienne Adams; the current New York City comptroller, Brad Lander; former comptroller Scott Stringer; former Bronx assemblyman Michael Blake; state senators Zellnor Myrie and Jessica Ramos; and former hedge fund manager Whitney Tilson. Continue reading...

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